Friday, December 18, 2020
Dear RSU 71 Students, Families, Staff, School Board, and Community Members,
This week's update contains information about changes to Maine schools' standard operating procedures (SOP) around COVID-19 and some good news in the area of staffing and ventilation. It will be the last update until Friday, January 8, unless we have a positive case of the Coronavirus or an outbreak in our community. This message will be Robo-emailed to all families and posted on the district website and my blog.
COVID 19 Update: There are still no active cases of COVID-19 and no evidence of transmission in our RSU 71 school system. The humongous surge of COVID-19 in Maine is directly related to Thanksgiving gatherings. Over vacation, which starts after school on Tuesday, December 22 (which is a half-day for students and staff), please do everything in your power to observe all safety protocols (wear masks, maintain social distance even with loved ones, limit gatherings, wash your hands constantly) to enable us to stay in school in -person for the remainder of the winter.
Revisions have been made to the guidance provided in Maine's Framework for the Safe Return to In-Person Instruction and the current Standard Operating Procedures for any confirmed cases in our schools. Dates are added to the places within the guidance that have been revised since its initial development this summer. The SOP changes reflect the current hotline implementation in response to the CDC contact tracers' request to streamline the reporting and follow-up processes. The new SOP can be accessed here. The other changes are limited to ventilation, buses, and the use of band instruments and can be accessed here.
O2 Prime Installation is finished in all locations! - Our new HVAC air filtration systems are up and running in all our schools, again thanks to pandemic funding. O2 Prime perpetually cleans surfaces and the air from germs of all kinds, including the common cold. So quite apart from the pandemic, it is a good investment.
Additional Nurses and Subs Hired - For this school year only, we have hired two additional nurses, so there a nurse in every location able to respond to coronavirus concerns. We have hired a full-time substitute in every school so that each becomes a staff member known to students and staff and on-hand to lend additional support wherever needed, be it a classroom, playground, gym, lunchroom, hallway, office, cafeteria, or kitchen. CRF monies have enabled us to hire for these positions.
Commitment: On a personal level, I am pleased to have had my superintendent contract with RSU 71 extended through June of 2024. I love this school district a lot and am thankful for and honored by the confidence shown, and the continuity and momentum enabled.
SNOW! - I think this is the 6th winter storm in the past two-and-a-half years in which the decision needed to be made before the storm had begun. It is a surreal experience to wake before dawn and need to decide when there is nary a snowflake in the sky. I hope that students were able to get outside and play. Many thanks to Christine Stevens, Scott Packard, David Murray, Travis McAvoy, and Jeffrey Gilmore for plowing late last night to get us ready for school today.
While subsequent storm days may well be remote school days for everyone -- teachers and students are well-prepared for this eventuality -- it was my strong sense that both students and teachers were ready for a good old-fashioned snow day yesterday, and knowing we have been in-person for instruction far longer than most school systems helped me decide. Our interim directors of transportation and maintenance were out on the roads by 3:30 and 4:00 am, checking road conditions and buildings' readiness. Reading that the storm would dump a lot of snow in a short period during the school day and that there would likely be white-out conditions and poor visibility sealed the deal.
Holiday Joy - It is the last day of Hanukkah, and the Yuletide season is upon us. It is a white Christmas and a joyful time for many, but not for everyone. So many of our brothers and sisters struggle with economic hardship, and poverty has its own pernicious effects, making it hard to provide little ones with gifts from Santa and put a roasted turkey on the table, for example.
I remember that our first few Christmases with our adopted sons were very, very tough. Some of the most severe abuse had happened to them during the holidays, and they felt sure that not only would Santa not know where to find them, but also that they had been such very, very bad boys they didn't deserve presents. I will never forget the first Christmas as a family when my husband and I heard them creep down the stairs in their onesie pajamas and exclaim, "He came! Santa Claus came!"
I love that our community does so much outreach. The Belfast Rotary Club, of which I am a proud member, has an annual 100 Club to provide gifts to children in need. Our school district is also keenly aware of and committed to children and young adults who struggle. Let's hold our hearts open and do what we can to provide love, sustenance, and light for their paths into adulthood. And give them the best education we can, a leg up in the world, and a chance to change the trajectory.
Wishing you joy and peace this holiday season and sending wishes for fortitude and spirit in the New Year, one that includes our being in school as much as possible.
