Dear Villa’s Families,

This letter is to inform you that a number of students at Villa Academy have a severe peanut and/or tree nut allergy. Strict avoidance of these products is the only way to prevent a life threatening allergic reaction for such children. We are asking your assistance in providing these students with a safe learning environment. The safety and well being of all our students is of utmost importance to all of us at Villa Academy.

Foods eaten at school pose a significant risk for accidental exposure because children share table space where traces of food can remain after lunch or snack has been eaten. Our Preschool through Grades 2 are Nut Free Grades.  While peanut/tree nut products are not banned throughout the school, all students and their parents are urged to be mindful of the dangers of exposure to these proteins for some of our children. We want to take every reasonable measure we can to reduce the risk of exposure for these children.

The school is requesting that anyone who eats peanut/tree nut products on campus wash his or her hands afterward.  This is equally important for parents who volunteer at school. Allergy experts recommend a combination of awareness education and hand washing as the best practices to manage nut allergies. If your child eats peanuts/tree nuts or a product containing either, before coming to school, please be sure your child’s hands have been thoroughly washed before coming to school.   Even if the allergic child is not in your child’s classroom or grade level, all Villa children travel throughout the building using the same handrails, doorknobs, water fountains and lavatories.

If you are providing treats for the classroom, please let the teacher know in advance so that she/he can check with parents of potentially affected children, as to the safety of the planned treat.  Please also consider bringing a non-food treat item instead.  Often, children deliver leftover classroom treats to other offices and classrooms. We love to instill the spirit of sharing, but with food items we are asking that your child not share food with any other children at school and in the case of classroom treats, food needs to be contained in the classroom and leftovers should go home with the parent.

We hope that everyone is willing to follow these guidelines so all of the children at Villa will be able to safely participate in the full range of classroom leaning, activities and celebrations that occur throughout the school year.

Sincerely,

Polly Skinner

Head of School