Stoneham Public Schools Covid-19 Center
for the week after Thanksgiving (Monday, November 30 through Friday, December 4, 2020)
November 23, 2020
Dear Colleagues,
Over the last few updates, I have informed you of the increase in positive cases in our community and our schools. According to our most recent update, there have been 143 positive cases in the town of Stoneham since November 1, 2020. This represents a significant increase as we only had 55 cases in the town of Stoneham in the entire month of October. In addition, we have seen 19 positive cases of students and staff during November. We thankfully have not seen widespread transmission in our schools due in large part to the commitment of students and staff to follow key public health recommendations including handwashing, social distancing, and masking wearing. However, as COVID cases continue to rise in our community and our school there are significant challenges to keeping students and staff safe.
Given the upcoming school holiday and reality of families traveling and gathering together we have grown increasingly concerned about a continued spike in community transmission in the town of Stoneham and therefore within the schools. Because of this, I have made the difficult decision to have all Stoneham Public Schools move to the Remote Learning Model for the week after Thanksgiving (Monday, November 30 through Friday, December 4, 2020). During that week we will continue to monitor community and school positivity rates to determine if it is appropriate to return to the Hybrid Learning Model. We will communicate any updated information as soon as it is available.
You should receive information from your child’s principal and classroom teacher regarding their remote learning schedule for the week. All special education students should refer to their SPS COVID-19 Special Education Learning Plan for links to their IEP services. Please be sure that your child(ren) has their Chromebook(s). If you do not have a Chromebook please contact your child’s principal as soon as possible so we can make sure that you have the technology you need.
We want to remind all school community members to use the Stoneham Public Schools COVID-19 Hotline Number -- 781-435-6151. Please call this number immediately to report a positive COVID test for a student or staff member or if a student or staff member has been in close contact with a COVID positive person. After you leave a message on the COVID hotline a Stoneham Public Schools staff member will be in touch with you shortly to discuss next steps.
As a reminder, the CDC defines close contact as someone who was within 6 feet of an infected person for a cumulative total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period starting from 2 days before illness onset (or, for asymptomatic patients, 2 days prior to test date).
We also wanted to acknowledge and thank the Stoneham Town Administrator’s Office who we have worked closely and collaboratively with since the start of the pandemic. Their assistance and guidance is appreciated. The town has a new Town of Stoneham COVID dashboard that is updated weekly.
These are difficult times for our school community and families. As a school community, we have and will continue to deal with the challenges faced by this pandemic, adapt to the situation, and provide a high quality education for all of our students. I wish all students and families a Happy Thanksgiving. I am grateful for your support and patience.
Sincerely,
John Macero
Superintendent of Schools
Please call 781-435-6151 immediately to report a positive COVID test for a student or staff member or if a student or staff member has been in close contact with a COVID positive person. The CDC defines close contact as someone who was within 6 feet of an infected person for a cumulative total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period starting from 2 days before illness onset (or, for asymptomatic patients, 2 days prior to test date). If the student or staff tests positive or is a close contact of someone who has tested positive, such as a family member, they should NOT come to school. After you leave a message on the COVID hotline a Stoneham Public Schools staff member will be in touch with you shortly to discuss next steps.
Por favor llame a 781-435-6151 inmediatamente para reportar una prueba COVID positiva para un estudiante o miembro del personal o si un estudiante o miembro del personal ha estado en estrecho contacto con una persona positiva COVID. El CDC define el contacto cercano comoalguien que estaba a menos de 6 pies de una persona infectada por un total acumulado de 15 minutos o más durante un período de 24 horas a partir de 2 días antes del inicio de la enfermedad (o, para pacientes asintomáticos, 2 días antes de la fecha de prueba). Si el estudiante o el personal da positivo o es un contacto cercano de alguien que ha dado positivo, como un miembro de la familia, NO debe venir a la escuela. Después de dejar un mensaje en la línea directa coVID, un miembro del personal de las Escuelas Públicas de Stoneham se pondrá en contacto con usted en breve para discutir los próximos pasos.
Por favor, ligue para 781-435-6151 imediatamente. para relatar um teste COVID positivo para um aluno ou membro da equipe ou se um aluno ou membro da equipe esteve em contato próximo com uma pessoa positiva COVID. O CDC define contato próximo como alguém que estava a 1,80 m de uma pessoa infectada por um total acumulado de 15 minutos ou mais durante um período de 24 horas a partir de 2 dias antes do início da doença (ou, para pacientes assintomáticos, 2 dias antes da data do teste). Se o aluno ou funcionário testar positivo ou for um contato próximo de alguém que tenha testado positivo, como um membro da família, ele NÃO deve vir para a escola. Depois de deixar uma mensagem na linha direta do COVID, um membro da equipe da Stoneham Public Schools entrará em contato com você em breve para discutir os próximos passos.
781-435-6151 يرجى الاتصال على هذا الرقم على الفور للإبلاغ عن اختبار COVID إيجابي للطالب أو عضو في الفريق أو إذا كان الطالب أو الموظف على اتصال وثيق مع شخص إيجابي COVID. يعرف مركز السيطرة على الأمراض الاتصال الوثيق بأنه شخص كان على بعد 6 أقدام من الشخص المصاب لمجموع تراكمي قدره 15 دقيقة أو أكثر على مدى فترة 24 ساعة تبدأ من 2 أيام قبل ظهور المرض (أو، بالنسبة للمرضى الذين لا يعانون من أعراض، 2 أيام قبل تاريخ الاختبار). إذا كان الطالب أو الموظفين إيجابيين أو كان على اتصال وثيق مع شخص ما، مثل أحد أفراد الأسرة، يجب ألا يأتي إلى المدرسة. بعد ترك رسالة على الخط الساخن COVID سوف يكون أحد موظفي مدارس ستونهام العامة على اتصال بك قريبًا لمناقشة الخطوات التالية.