Dear parents, families, and guardians,
I'm writing today to thank you for all of your support in guiding our students through a successful year and to provide you with a few updates.
Mask and Distancing Requirements
Effective Monday, June, 21, 2021 students and staff who are fully vaccinated will no longer be required to wear a mask either outdoors or indoors. It is still strongly recommended that those students and staff who are not vaccinated wear a mask, though it is not required at this time. We will continue to follow many safety recommendations and guidelines for our summer programs this year and anyone who chooses to wear a mask this summer will be allowed to do so. We will also continue to follow guidelines for hand hygiene, staying home when sick, and connecting with our school nurses when we have any questions regarding our health.
At this time due to the low number of COVID-19 cases in Massachusetts we are not aware of any masking or distancing guidelines that will be in place for the fall. We have been informed that there may be updates in the summer and I will keep you informed of any news or information as I receive it. For those interested, our last reported positive case in NRPS was on May 24th. I have attached the latest updates from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) to this message for your review.
Vaccination Clinics
We have consolidated our 2nd dose COVID-19 vaccination clinic to run on one day: June 28, 2021. We will have more information to share soon but I believe that anyone in need of a first or second dose who is at least twelve years old will be eligible to sign up. This is completely optional and offered for your convenience. More information and a link will be coming soon.
Summer Programs
We will have a variety of supports and programs available to students as extended school year and summer programs and those students and families have already been contacted about those programs and dates.
In addition, we will be identifying students at each school for an intensive acceleration academy during the week of August 23-27, 2021. These programs are grant funded through the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and will serve 10-12 students per identified grade at each school for those entering grades K, 1, 2 (early Literacy) and 3, 4, 8, and 10 (Mathematics). We will be in touch with those selected for these programs in the coming weeks with more information.
NRPS 2025
On Tuesday, June 22, 2021 we will be hosting two repeated sessions (attend one) in order to involve all of our stakeholders and school community in the visioning process for our district strategy. A link will be shared with everyone who completes this form. I'm thrilled to have nearly 100 responses already! If you are unable to attend the sessions but would like to provide some feedback please complete the form above as well.
THANK YOU!
It's been quite a year and I appreciate your continued support for our students, staff, and schools. Our Educators and Administrators have worked so hard and every member of our staff (Nurses, Custodians, Food Service, Paraprofessionals, Administrative Assistants!) have truly gone above and beyond. It's been a pleasure working so closely with our entire School Committee, Bargaining Units, and Town Officials. Our Town Administrator, Michael Gilleberto, Police Chief Michael Murphy, Fire Chief Don Stats, Director of Public Health Bob Bracey, Public Health Nurses Donna Hovey and Pam Vath, and our Lead Nurse, Coleen Reska have been so important this year as we've navigated every decision. Sean Killeen, Cynthia Conant, Dan Downs, and Michael Connelly have been invaluable members of our Central Office Team. Our Principals, Asst. Principals, and Leadership Team have been amazing. And I would especially like to thank Scott Buckley, School Committee Chair; Peter Kane, NREA President; and Nancy Scioli, NR Federation of Paraprofessionals President, who were all on speed dial for the ongoing discussions and decisions this year. It was a truly collaborative effort.
We are so grateful for the cooperation and support of everyone in our community. The students, parents, guardians, families and entire school community came together to make this year the best it could possibly be!
On those last days our Central Office team was able to visit all of our schools and we heard a consistent message from all of our staff and students. They were all pleased to have ended the year in person for so many of our students and to have been able to offer supports to students in-remote throughout the year. I know that Michael and I felt like celebrities signing those fifth grade yearbooks! It was a wonderful day for everyone to see those smiling faces, and as I said to this year's graduating class, All's Well That Ends Well.
Have a wonderful summer and be well.
Dr. Daly
