April 1, 2021
Dear Families,
Please see below for important updates and reminders for the return to five day in-person learning. Schools will be reaching out as necessary with details specific to each building.
Please contact your child’s school if you have any questions.
Enjoy the long weekend!
Southwick-Tolland-Granville
Regional School
STGRSD Return to Five Day In-Person
Updates and Reminders
April 1, 2021
Five Day In-Person Learning Begins
Grades PreK-6: Monday, April 5, 2021
Grades 7-12: Monday, April 26, 2021
Wednesdays
Effective immediately, all Wednesdays will be FULL learnings days of school for ALL students, K-12. This includes students attending school in-person and remotely.
Students in Grades K-6
All remaining Wednesdays will be full in-person days for all in-person students; students are expected to be in school for the entire school day.
All students enrolled in STGRSD Online Full Remote learning will follow a full day learning schedule with teachers as well.
Students in Grades 7-12
Students in Grades 7-12 will remain in their assigned hybrid cohorts until April 26, 2021, the only difference being Wednesdays will be a full day of instruction with teachers for ALL students, regardless of whether they are in-person or remote. All students, including remote learners, will be expected to attend classes from 7:30 a.m. - 2:10 p.m. with a 30 minute lunch period.
For example, during the weeks of April 5, 2021 and April 12, 2021 SRS students will attend according to the following schedule:
Beginning on April 26, 2021, hybrid cohorts A & B will no longer exist and all students will attend in-person five full days per week.
All students enrolled in STGRSD Online Full Remote learning will remain fully remote and will be expected to follow a full day schedule as well.
Updated District Calendar
The School Committee approved an updated calendar for the 20/21 school year. A copy of the calendar is available to download from the District website:
https://www.stgrsd.org/UserFiles/Servers/Server_914208/File/Community/Calendars/STGRSD%2020202021%20Calendar%20v6.0.pdf
Student Devices
Students in grades 5-12 should plan to bring their device with them to school each day. The majority of district owned devices have been distributed to students for remote learning and now schools only have a limited number of available devices for classroom use.
COVID Protocols
The District response protocols to staff and students reporting symptoms or diagnosis of COVID-19 have been updated. The updated protocols are located on the District website:
https://www.stgrsd.org/cms/One.aspx?portalId=914292&pageId=28053176
Key changes were made regarding quarantine guidelines for non-household close contacts and siblings of close contacts. Additionally, the new protocols specify that the District will only accept PCR (polymerase chain reaction) COVID-19 test results.
Please contact your school nurse with any questions relating to the requirements.
Schools will continue to practice the important protocols to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 in our community.
•
Practice Social Distancing – During the return to five day in-person learning, staff and students will strive to maintain six-feet of physical distancing whenever possible. Lesser distances will be utilized as needed. During school lunches, and mask breaks, unmasked students will adhere to the minimum six-foot distance.
•
Wear a Mask – Mask wearing will be required for all students and staff for the remainder of the school year regardless of vaccination status. Vaccination is not an alternative to mask wearing.
•
Wash Your Hands Often – Students will be encouraged to wash their hands frequently or use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol. Hand sanitizer will be provided when hand washing is not available.
•
Clean Surfaces – We will continue our COVID-19 cleaning protocols at all buildings.
•
Ventilation – Windows will be open and ventilation systems will continue to be set to maximize air exchange.
•
Stay Home If You Are Sick – Students and staff must monitor themselves for COVID-19 symptoms and stay home if they are not feeling well.
Students Who Stay Home From School
Under the new requirements, students are only able to participate in remote learning under the following conditions:
•
Enrolled in STGRSD Online Full Remote Learning Model
•
District determined COVID-19 related absence such as: COVID-19 related symptoms or illness, identified as a close contact, or quarantine. All of these situations will require student to meet District criteria prior to returning to school.
Lunch & Breakfast
FREE breakfast and lunch meal service will continue to be available for all students for the remainder of the school year.
In-Person
•
So that school nutrition staff can plan for meals upon the return of students to five day in-person, we kindly ask that you please pre-order using SchoolCafé
www.schoolcafe.com .
Remote Curbside
•
Curbside meal service will continue for remote students. Visit the School Nutrition page on the District website for schedule information:
https://www.stgrsd.org/departments/school_nutrition
Weekly Meal Kits
•
Free weekly meal kits will continue to be distributed on Wednesdays from 4:30 p.m. – 5:30 p.m. at Southwick Regional School. Please reserve your weekly kit by 10:00 a.m. on the Friday prior to pick up:
https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=7J1o1m5JbkiK5ut2K-7JN2gSmLjJ1PBIsC8U2GQPOVRUQkhOTUdYMlBTWVNFOEk1UjdGWEFTNTZTRC4u
Transportation
The transportation department has contacted families who have requested a change to their child’s transportation. Route adjustments have necessitated bus number and time changes and affected families will receive additional information.
Travel Advisory
As of March 22, 2021 Massachusetts has lifted their COVID-19 Travel Order and now advises all visitors and returning residents entering Massachusetts to follow the Commonwealth’s new travel advisory as detailed on their website:
https://www.mass.gov/info-details/covid-19-travel-advisory
At this time, we encourage families to tell us if they are traveling and urge you to test or quarantine, as recommended under the guidelines, upon return from your trip. If you would like remote learning set up for post travel quarantine, please notify your child’s school at least 48-hours prior to the start of the need for remote learning.