Newton Schools Prepare Plans To Open In September
NEWTON, MA — The School Department is working on three plans for the reopening of the schools this fall. But they've been largely waiting for more direction from the state. On Thursday it came: Schools must plan for remote and in-person learning and require new safety measures — including face coverings, hand-washing and more — when classes resume in the fall.
"The guidance prioritizes the safe return to in-person school settings to address the academic, and social-emotional health of our students. I fully support this priority," said Superintendent David Fleishman in a letter to the Newton Community. "This return to in-person school will be accompanied by a comprehensive set of health and safety requirements to mitigate the risk of COVID-19 exposure or transmission."
Fleishman said the district has begun planning to address those requirements.
"The DESE guidance provides more specifics on the requirements, including physical distancing, classroom configuration, and use of face coverings, among others."
The state is asking districts to develop three plans for the fall including:
In-person school with necessary health and safety accommodations
A hybrid model of in-person and distance learning
Full distance learning
Fleishman said Newton's planning teams have already begun working on all three, and expects additional guidance in other areas of essential school operations, such as transportation, later this summer, as well as any adjustments to this initial guidance based upon public health data.
"We anticipate our plans for the fall will be finalized by the week of July 20," he said.
Fleishman asked for community feedback as they continue planning. He said the district would be sending out short surveys regarding family plans for students this fall.
"We ask that you please take the time to complete these surveys so that we are developing plans that address areas such as transportation and classroom configuration," he said.
Read more: School In MA After Coronavirus: Your Questions Answered
The Initial Fall School Reopening Guidance requires students above the first grade wear face coverings and has all students likely eating meals in their classroom to avoid the possible spread of the coronavirus. It also requires staff to wear masks and mandates desks be at least 3 feet apart and facing the same direction.
The guidelines do not require daily temperature-taking or COVID-19 testing. They also don't limit class sizes, leaving it up to educators to determine how many children can be taught safely with social distancing.
"Our goal for the fall is to safely bring back as many students as possible to in-person school settings, to maximize learning and address our students’ holistic needs," the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education said in a statement. "With the information provided in this memo, districts and schools should begin planning for a fall return that includes multiple possibilities, with a focus first and foremost on getting our students back into school buildings."
The guidelines said the precautions and protocols will make the risk of the virus spreading in schools "likely lower" than in other places. They also shine a light on how different and difficult resuming mass education during the pandemic could be, including requiring face coverings for all students in the second grade and above.
Face coverings must be worn by everyone — students, staff and educators — unless there is a medical or disability exemption in school and on buses. Face shields can be used a replacement in some cases.
There will be times when students will be permitted to remove face coverings during the school day, but only when students are at least 6 feet apart and have the windows open or are outside. School officials expect more guidance to come out on this.
An informal Patch study released this week suggests there could be widespread support for the in-school mask requirement. Eighty-six percent of some 9,000 respondents said schools should requires masks when they reopen.
Newton Schools - and schools statewide - have been closed since March 15 in an effort to help stop the spread of the coronavirus outbreak.
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- Patch staff writer Mike Carraggi contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on the Newton Patch
