Dear Notre Dame and St. Thomas the Apostle School Communities:
We are writing to let you know that, given the continued severity of the fires in Butte County and on the advice of Cal Fire, we have decided to close Notre Dame School, Chico, and St. Thomas the Apostle School, Oroville, from Tuesday, November 13 through Friday, November 16, 2018.
Although firefighters have taken decisive action to prevent their further spread, the fires are still not contained, roads remain closed, and the air quality is poor. Many of our community members have already had to evacuate their homes, and still more may need to leave depending on how the situation develops. Butte County public schools and California State University, Chico have announced that they will remain closed for the week, and Cal Fire has encouraged us to close as well.
As such, we have made the decision to close Notre Dame and St. Thomas the Apostle Schools for the coming week. We appreciate the extra burden this places upon families, and we assure you that we have made this decision deliberately and with the best interest of the children and the community in mind.
As we stated in our e-mail of yesterday, if you have had to leave Butte County for another city or town, please do not hesitate to reach out to us if you would like your child to attend the Catholic school in your area for the time you are evacuated.
We will continue to communicate with you as the situation evolves.
Peace,
Lincoln Snyder, Executive Director of Schools, The Diocese of Sacramento
Terri Schwabauer, Principal, Notre Dame School
Kasia Heinert, Principal, St. Thomas the Apostle School