Submitted by Gretchen Krampf.

The Mullis Center partnership with Spring Street International School, during the pandemic, has been a win-win situation. During these many months of COVID-19, the Mullis Center has been an integral part of Spring Street School’s student experience. Our facilities allowed the extra classroom space needed for SSIS to continue with in-person instruction while providing the Mullis Center with the rental income needed to remain operational during the lean months of 2020 and 2021.

SSIS and the Mullis Center worked with SJ County Health Officer Dr. Frank James to put health guidelines and protocols in place and get official approval for SSIS to use the Mullis Center for in-person instruction.

Mullis Center manager Anna Coffelt said, “The SSIS students and staff were wonderful to work with. They were polite, thoughtful, respectful and fun. We enjoyed the opportunity to partner with them during the difficult pandemic months and especially appreciated the energy they brought with them.”

Teacher Elana Porten and Head of School Louis Prussack worked closely with Anna and offered their appreciation. “We are incredibly grateful for our partnership with the Mullis Community Senior Center this school year. For the last nine months, we have been able to hold in-person classes, as a result of this partnership. The larger Mullis Center room sizes allowed our school to adapt to the challenges of this year and stay in-person, while socially distanced. We could not have done this without collaborating with our neighbor, the Mullis Center. Sharing this space proved to be a huge success and an immeasurable value for our students and faculty during one of the hardest years in education. Thank you Mullis Center staff for sharing your space with our school community this year!”

In the true spirit of being a community resource, The Mullis Center wants to congratulate the graduates of SSIS and we look forward to our continued friendship in years to come. We’re already talking about some intergenerational collaboration and projects for next year.