A fence has been put in place around Menlo’s campus, with a single entrance through the gate along the loop. Once in-person classes resume, every person will be required to have a temperature check in order to enter campus. A “fast-track lane” will be available for those who complete their temperature check-in through the One Medical app before arriving on campus. For others, temperatures will be taken through either hand-held thermometers or thermal cameras, Director of Operations and Construction Loren Arms said in a faculty meeting on Aug. 7.

Classrooms have been rearranged to accommodate social distancing and online learning. Each classroom is structured around a center aisle with five to six desks on either side of the aisle, facing each other, with six feet between each desk. Extra furniture has been moved into the west gym. Each classroom now includes color-coded, fabric towels and disinfectant wipes for students. High-efficiency air filters have been installed in each classroom, marked by a blue button on the wall, Arms said.

Portables have been installed around campus to act as additional socially-distanced study spaces. Canopies will also be available for teachers who wish to conduct outdoor classes, with creative arts classes such as drama and music given priority. Lids have been added to toilets in order to prevent the spread of the coronavirus when the toilets flush, according to Arms.

The Spieker Center for the Performing Arts and the Whitaker Lab extension are scheduled for completion by mid-October. Improvements have also been made in the ventilation in the Creative Arts and Design Center’s art and photography classes. By the end of the school year, the solar energy production of the school will increase by three to four times, Arms said.

The Cartan tennis courts have been resurfaced, and the surrounding trees, which dropped debris and whose roots were destroying the courts, were removed. An outdoor training facility consisting of a concrete layer covered with padding and astro-turf is being installed for the Performance and Wellness Department by Cartan, according to Arms.

The administration is working with San Mateo County to begin holding on-campus, socially-distanced extracurricular activities, including clubs and athletics, starting on Aug. 31. In total, all of the coronavirus related expenses including technology, facilities, PPE, staffing and testing is between $3.3 million and $6.3 million, according to Chief Financial Officer Bill Silver. The $3 million difference between the minimum and the maximum is due to uncertainty in the cost and frequency of Covid 19 testing and whether Menlo, insurance or the government will pay the cost. “There is not a thing that has been suggested to us that we have not done — not a thing,” Arms said during the faculty meeting.