Today's News About the Coronavirus

The following letter was shared with K-12 parents, faculty, and staff at 4 p.m. Thursday, March 5 regarding a confirmed case of coronavirus COVID-19 in Williamson County.
Dear USN families and faculty,
 
Let me confirm our awareness of today's announcement about an identified coronavirus case in Williamson County and our knowledge of the Grand Rounds discussion at Vanderbilt University Medical Center this morning. The news of a local instance of the illness tracks directly with what we had been led to expect given projections for the domestic acceleration of exposure, including in our region.
 
What I can share with certainty is that:
  • We are deepening our efforts to clean and sanitize things here at USN.
  • We are reviewing any scheduled travel and event attendance away from campus.
  • We canceled the summer trip to Spain today and continue to monitor for the latest travel advisories.
  • We are continuing our reminders to everyone across the USN community to practice preventative hygiene per CDC guidelines. And if any of us does not feel well, staying home is the expected course of action.
The benefit of a preemptive school closure, absent evident substantial illness here, is not yet clear to us. Of course we'll listen carefully to medical advice, follow Metro Nashville Public Health recommendations & mandates, watch our friends at Vanderbilt University, and respond in turn. From all we can gather, the presence of this virus is likely to be a longer-term reality nationally.
 
Conversations with faculty members about how best to maintain our academic program progress from a distance are evolving, though the inherent unpredictability of the situation makes any definitive planning especially challenging. It's just a fact that trying to do USN from home, away from this community, is far from optimal in terms of teaching and learning.
 
Perhaps most important is the fact that we continue to assess where things stand on a fairly constant basis. Saturday's letter to you now seems quite far back in time. My gratitude extends ever more sincerely to the range of medical experts who share news, wisdom, and emerging best practice with us, and I can promise you we'll work tirelessly to strike the right balance between caution and confidence given all that we come to know.
 
Thanks for reading. I'll keep the updates coming.
 
And keep doing what you can to stay healthy,
Vince Durnan
Director
 
Reminders from the USN Health Room
Please keep students with fever, cough, and respiratory symptoms home until they are 24 hours fever-free (less than 100.4 degrees) or have no signs of a fever without the use of fever-reducing medicine and no vomiting or diarrhea. Click here for overviews of treatment and prevention of influenza, strep throat, and the common cold, which we commonly see this time of year.

Basic Hygiene Best Practices 
  • When washing hands: Wet hands. Turn off water. Soap and scrub for 30 to 60 seconds. Rinse well. Dry well.
  • Cough into the sleeve of your elbow or into tissues. If you cough into your hands, wash your hands immediately.
  • Wash with a general household cleaner to remove germs, then rinse with water, then clean surfaces and door handles with EPA approved products designated to kill flu viruses.
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School News

List of 3 news stories.

  • 'They're creepy, they're kooky,' they're on stage at USN

    USN Peabody Players present "The Addams Family: School Edition" on Thursday, November 19 through Sunday, November 22 in Durnan Auditorium. Click here for tickets. This musical is appropriate for K-12 audiences.
    Read More

  • Music Night REMIX tickets on sale

    Join USNA on Saturday, January 30, for all the nostalgia, none of the teenage drama. This adult-only concert will feature USN's faculty house band, The K-12 Situation, with proceeds benefiting the school. Click here for tickets.
    Read More

  • Diplomacy wins for USN at Model UN

    High School students traveled to Murfreesboro last weekend for the Model UN conference last weekend, which provided opportunities for leadership and collaboration across grade levels. They had the highest number of resolutions per capita in the General Assembly, had the highest-ranking resolution presented to any committee, and earned awards for Outstanding Statesperson & Outstanding Resolution.
    Read More
Archive

Athletics News

List of 3 news stories.

  • Mountain Bike Team Takes on “Electric" State Champs Trails, Dehner Snags Overall Podium Medal

    Steve Smail & MTB Team Coaches
    With trail names like Megawatt, Electric Avenue, High Voltage and Livewire, the mountain bike team knew it was time to pedal out some extra watts for their NICA/TICL State Championships at Raccoon Mountain, and survive the technical trails above Chattanooga full of boulder gardens, rock drops and sandy rubble.
    Read More

  • Mountain Bike Team Takes on Winged Deer Trails, HS Makes Podium Appearance

    Steve Smail
    Winged Deer Park and trails in Johnson City hosted our 4th race on Sunday October 11th, and despite a bit of hurricane outwash winds and showers - and reduced team numbers due to fall break and distance from Nashville - our racers utilized all available skills and speed which helped “wing" Sophomore Claire Dehner to a 4th place podium spot, our first podium appearance and medal for the season.
     
    Read More

  • HS athletics recaps for September 11-17

    Tiger golfers have officially qualified for the region tournament, and our other teams are not far behind. Volleyball sits near the top of the district, finishing up regular season play next week with Senior Night. Girls soccer continues to hold first place in the district after another 9-0 win, and our cross country runners are chasing after some school records. To round it all out, our mountain bike team traveled to Oakfield to continue to improve on their times for the season. There’s plenty more where that came from- so be sure to come out to the River Campus, Sperling Gym, or out on the road to cheer on our Tigers before their seasons end.
    Read More

Contact

Edgehill Campus
2000 Edgehill Ave.
Nashville, TN 37212

Phone:  615-321-8000
Fax:       615-321-0889 
Email:    info@usn.org

River Campus
1200 County Hospital Road
Nashville, TN 37218

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USN Mission: 
University School of Nashville models the best educational practices. In an environment that represents the cultural and ethnic composition of Metropolitan Nashville, USN fosters each student’s intellectual, artistic, and athletic potential, valuing and inspiring integrity, creative expression, a love of learning, and the pursuit of excellence.