Good Afternoon, Reading Public School Staff and Families,

I hope that you have had a great weekend.  Here is Winter Hybrid Update #4.

• Hybrid Learning Resumes Tomorrow-We are pleased to announce that hybrid learning resumes tomorrow at our schools.  Cohort B, Kindergarten, Preschool, and High Needs students will be in person tomorrow.  High School Athletics and Extra-curricular resumed last Friday.   We want to thank our parents for their flexibility last week and for our teachers, administrators, and staff for the work that they did to make the switch from in person to remote last week.

• New Year, New Commitment-The following information is being sent out by our school nurses and will be points of emphasis as we start the New Year.  Covid-19 has been a part of our lives for almost a year. The restrictions are difficult.  None of us are in this alone, but only by working together can we create change.  To that end, let’s begin 2021 with a renewed focus on the Reading School Community’s commitment to health so we can get back to the way life was before March of 2020.
  • What can you do?  Stay the course – it works if we stay focused on the goal.
  • Keep our buildings safe by staying home/keeping your child home and communicating with your school nurse for any Covid-19 symptoms:

•  Difficulty breathing/shortness of breath
•  Fever (100.0 degrees or higher)
• Chills
• New loss of taste or smell
• Muscle aches
• Abdominal discomfort – nausea/vomiting/diarrhea
• Cough (a change from any baseline cough related to allergies or asthma)
• Headaches.

• While at school:
• Stay 6 feet apart from others.

• Travel guidelines are linked here.  Travel outside of Massachusetts to any other red state obligates travelers to test or quarantine.  Please check the website below for the latest information and check with your school nurse if you have any questions.

                      Massachusetts Covid-19 Travel Advisory

• Seek testing if you believe you have been exposed or if you are symptomatic.  While awaiting results, communicate with your school nurse and principal and do not come to school to limit potential exposure of students and staff.  Testing site information is available here:

        Stop the Spread

• COVID-19 Information-Listed below are the COVID-19 cases of students and staff since January 4^th.  We will continue to monitor these cases and update when necessary.

• 12 RMHS students, including 3 in season athletes, 6 athletes quarantined.
• 9 middle school students (7 Parker 2 Coolidge)
• 2 elementary school students from two different schools.  Because it is an individual case in each school, we cannot share the school due to student privacy.
• 0 RISE 
• 4 staff members at two schools (Birch Meadow, Parker)

• Testing Program-We have been working with the Town of Reading Incident Command Team and the Board of Health on providing testing for our staff and students.  On Friday, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education announced an opportunity for school districts to participate in a pooled testing program for COVID-19 for staff and students.  We will be investigating this opportunity to determine the feasibility of it and we will be reporting back to the community when we have more information.

• Food Distribution Continues-This is a reminder that our food distribution continues this week for all children, ages 0-22.  Families may pick up their food at the bridge at RMHS on Wednesday from 2:30-3:30 p.m. and Friday from 11:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.  Families will be provided with 7 breakfast and 7 lunches per child in their family.  This program is available to all families and is funded by the USDA.  You can come each week, whether your child is in person or remote.

• School Committee Meeting this Thursday-There will be a meeting of the Reading School Committee on Thursday, January 14^th.  The focus of the meeting will be the FY22 Superintendent’s Recommended Budget with an emphasis on the Regular Day and Special Education Cost Centers.  You can access the budget here.

• Thank you, Linda-Friday was Linda Engelson’s last day as the Executive Assistant to the Superintendent for the Reading Public Schools.  Linda has been a central office employee for over 20 years, the last 14 as the Executive Assistant.  We will miss her and we want to thank her for her dedication and years of service to our school district.

Have a great rest of the weekend and week ahead.

John Doherty

Superintendent

Reading Public Schools

82 Oakland Road

Reading, Massachusetts 01867

781-944-5800

John.doherty@reading.k12.ma.us