Weekly Update - Friday, May 27, 2022  

Dear RSU 71 Students, Families, Staff, School Board, and Community Partners, 

As we head into Memorial Day weekend, a time to mourn the U.S. military personnel who have died while serving in the United States Armed Forces, we also appreciate the liberties preserved in our great nation.

One of the rights preserved in the United States of America is the right to vote. An opportunity to exercise that right is coming on June 14, when the polls will be open in Searsmont, Swanville, Morrill, Belfast, and Belmont for voting on the proposed RSU 71 budget for FY 23 (the fiscal year 2022-2023). I hope that all RSU 71 families, staff living in the district, and other citizens will do their civic duty by coming out to vote and encouraging friends, families, and neighbors to do the same. More information about the budget may be found on the district website: https://www.rsu71.org/board-of-directors/budget.

  . 

Pandemic Update 

THMS and CASS have officially been cleared of outbreak status.

This Week's Data

	# New Positives / in isolation (day 0-5 not attending school)	Positives in days 6-10 (attending school)	# Community Quarantine (attending school - universal masking)
Ames	2	2	4
Weymouth	1	1	0
CASS	2	1	3
EB	0	3	3
Nickerson	0	0	0
THMS	3	0	0
BAHS/BCOPE/AE/CO/ Bus Garage/ Building & Grounds	5	2	2

Good News, Reminders, Information

Congratulations

Congratulations to our talented and dedicated community partners Ray and Patricia Estabrook, founders and directors of the Game Loft in Belfast and I Know ME. Their remarkable work with the young people of Waldo County has been extraordinary and even life-saving. The Estabrooks were invited to a gala event – an annual awards banquet sponsored by the MEA (Maine Education Association) – where they received a prestigious service award, The Golden Apple Award, along with their colleague Aden Hargrove. This award recognizes community-based organizations and volunteers that have made contributions in support of our students. Please join me in congratulating and thanking them for their outstanding service to our young people.

Ames

On May 18, we had a "reading tasting" at our Reading Restaurant. It was a wonderful event! Every student had a guest to read to, Students and Staff matched with those whose families could not attend. Librarian Steven Brown also joined us so that families could get a Library card.

Weymouth

The Ames Civil Rights team traveled to Weymouth on Friday 5/27 to host a mini field day which included a book walk, rock painting, obstacle course, parachute games, and learning the game of 4 square! Thank you Miss Page for coordinating this wonderful event. 

Captain Albert Stevens

A Message From Friends of Acadia and Acadia National Park:

Thank you so much for bringing your students to Acadia National Park and helping us out! Please let all of them know how much we appreciate their hard work and enthusiasm. Thanks to your group's efforts we were able to protect an important and historic section of Carriage Road which will help it survive any future storms. 

 

Additionally, thank you so much for the donated tools and gloves we have already used them with a couple of Service Groups!

 

Troy Howard 

Last Day of Seedling Sale!

The last day of the seedling sale is today! We still have lots of nice tomatoes, broccoli, kale, cabbage, cauliflower, herbs, and a few flowers. And DAHLIA tubers!! Get your seedlings today from 12:00 to 4:00 pm at Troy Howard!

 

THMS Newsletter

Newsletter 5/13 to 5/20

Newsletter 5/20 to 5/27
 

BAHS

BAHS Newsletter

May 20, 2022

 

WCTC 

National Technical Honor Society

KJ Payson and Brigham Graf were inducted into the NTHS on May 19, 2022. KJ is a Junior in the Electrical program, and Brigham is a Junior in the welding program. 

Information from Jon Beal, Chair of the Belfast Climate Crisis Committee 

On Tuesday, June 14, 6:00 pm in the Abbott Room of the Belfast Free Library, the Climate Crisis Committee, and the Belfast Free Library's ABCD Project will host a public meeting, where we hope all members of the Belfast community will provide their ideas for the plan we are developing, to address climate change and ensure a healthy and resilient future.

Central Office

Here's a news article about Susan Totman, our new executive administrative assistant to the superintendent and board of directors: Article on Susan Totman.

 

That's it for this week.  Please feel free to be in touch with the staff and me with questions, suggestions, ideas, and concerns. The next weekly update will be sent on Friday, June 3.

With best wishes for a meaningful Memorial Day weekend. 

Mary Alice McLean and Susan Totman

A message about the tragedy in Uvalde Texas

Wednesday, May 25, 2022

Dear RSU 71 Students, Families, School Board, and Community Partners, 

I'm writing today to acknowledge the impact of yesterday's tragic events at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, upon our school district. An eighteen-year-old walked into the Robb Elementary School and shot and killed 19 students, the teacher, and another adult.

We grieve for the students, staff, and families in Uvalde and keenly feel their loss.

Naturally, there is worry in our school district that something similar might one day happen to us.

This morning we convened our School District's Safety Team and our administrators, counselors, and nurses to discuss the incident and preparedness. Waldo County's Director of Emergency Management, Dale Rowley, was present for the meeting and continues to be a constant source of information and practical help to RSU 71.

• We will continue to keep all our exterior doors locked in all schools. We will also continue to test out our radios, and all staff will bring methods of communicating with the school while outside with students.

• We have an Emergency Response Plan in place, which is voted on annually by our Board of Directors. In addition, our schools continue to practice a variety of safety drills.

• Information about our ALICE training (Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, Evacuate) is on the district website (https://www.rsu71.org/parents-students/alice-training-info) under "Parents." It is accessible to families and community members who wish to view or take the training.

• Staff (administrators, school counselors, nurses, and others)  are well prepared to talk with concerned individuals. In addition, the school counselors have crafted a message to share with teachers for students.

• Our students, families, and community partners are tremendous preventative assets to our schools as they communicate any concerning information with our school administrators, counselors, and nurses. 

Please feel free to be in touch with the staff and me with questions, information, and concerns.

Sincerely, 

Mary Alice McLean

--

Mary Alice McLean

Superintendent of Schools, RSU 71

(207) 338 - 1960

Pandemic Update Friday 5/20/22

Weekly Update May 20, 2022

 

Dear RSU 71 Students, Families, Staff, School Board, and Community Partners, 

End-of-Year activities are in full swing with only three weeks left of school and the high school graduation scheduled for Sunday, June 5. At THMS this morning, families are streaming in for student-led parent/teacher conferences. There is an enormous display of food from the food pantry at the entrance, to which families are welcome to help themselves. A book fair is also going on in the lobby, and the district's food service team is meeting in the cafeteria. And this afternoon, from 12 noon - to 4:00 pm, there will be a Plant Sale at the Greenhouse. The Eight-Grade Fancy Dance is scheduled for Saturday, May 28.

From Garden Coordinator Mr. David Wessels and the 7th-grade Crew:

Stop by THMS for some beautiful seedlings every Friday afternoon this month!!! 

-Everything is on a sliding scale (pay what you want) with a suggested donation of $2.50 for a 4" pot (tomatoes/herbs) and $3 for a 6-pack.

-We can't set aside orders because we don't have the space in our brains or our greenhouse! Please stop by at the sale if you want seedlings. 

-Seedlings are free for Elementary Schools! We will set aside seedlings for schools if you let us know what you need.

-We accept CHECK or CASH. 

SCHEDULE:

Friday, 5/20 - Flowers, veggies, and herbs - We can still get a frost this week, so watch out!

Friday 5/27 - Flowers, veggies, and herbs - It should be safe to now plant tomatoes, peppers, and other frost-sensitive plants. 

Pandemic Update:

We had hoped to move to bi-weekly updates, but we still have positive coronavirus cases, so we have to continue reporting it. (THMS, for example, has had 200+ positive cases during the school year, with 106 occurring in the last twenty days; many infected people have become quite sick.) I have heard from two parents that they do not wish to hear the word "mask" or anything else about the coronavirus. While I fully commiserate with this sentiment, I am obliged to share the information. Please feel free to express your exasperation with me (but please don't take it out on our nurses). Many thanks in advance!

School Data as of today, Friday, May 20, 2022:

	# New Positives / in isolation (day 0-5 not attending school)	Positives in days 6-10 (attending school, wearing a mask)	# Community Quarantine
Ames	3	6	3
Weymouth	1	0	2
CASS	3	12	3
EB	4	2	4
Nickerson	0	1	0
THMS	2 (31 in past  14 days)	12	0
BAHS/BCOPE/AE/CO/ Bus Garage/ Building & Grounds	7	6	4

RSU 71 Covid Protocol:

Because we are no longer Pooled Testing and do not require masking, our Covid exemptions have changed. However, the SOP (CDC's standard operating procedure) is still in effect through the last day of school. The protocol below has been devised to enable students and staff to attend school and our traditional end-of-year events and celebrations.

Below is the protocol for students and staff.

1. Unvaccinated or Not Fully Vaccinated, Non-symptomatic Close Contacts of positive individuals may:

1. Choose to quarantine at home on days 1-5 and upon return to school, wear a mask for days 6-10.

   

OR

2. Choose to test at home on days 1, 3, and 5. If tests are negative, students and staff can attend school with a mask and should quarantine while at home. Contact your school nurse if you need testing kits. You may also go onto covidtests.gov to order free test kits.

        2. Symptomatic students and staff must stay home and contact 

the school nurse. Your school nurse will work with you to determine your 

course of action.

Definition of Fully Vaccinated:  

• For all adults 18+, to be fully vaccinated means to have received all recommended doses of a COVID-19 vaccine that have been authorized or approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and, if their primary vaccine series was completed more than five months ago,

 at least one booster. Being fully vaccinated for students  5-17 years means completing the primary series of COVID-19 vaccines.

With best wishes for a beautiful weekend and week ahead, 

Mary Alice McLean

Covid 19

Vaccination Clinic

Monday, May 23, 2022 12:00 - 4:00

Belfast Boat House

34 Commercial Street, Belfast

Offering 1st, 2nd, and both Pfizer and Moderna booster doses to all eligible adults.

Children 5-17 may be vaccinated with parental consent.

Note:  Booster doses for children 5-11 will not be available at this clinic.

ALL VACCINATIONS ARE FREE

NO APPOINTMENT NEEDED

This clinic is brought to you by  Belfast Fire & EMS Dept., Belfast Public Health Nursing, City of Belfast, Waldo County EMA, and the Maine CDC Division of Public Health Nursing.

--

Mary Alice McLean

Superintendent of Schools, RSU 71

(207) 338 - 1960