Report by Paula Antolini, August 15, 2020, 7:29PM EDT
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Communication from Bethel Public schools August 14, 2020:
Dear Parents, Guardians, and Staff,
I hope this communication finds you all safe and healthy. Because we need to finalize class lists, we will no longer be accepting any learning environments changes (In-Person Learning or Distance Learning)
after 4 PM on Tuesday, August 18th.
If you need to make a change please contact your child’s school directly via email as they will be able to assist you.
Contact your child’s school via email at the following addresses:
• Rockwell School: Karen Rowe, rowek@bethel.k12.ct.us
• Berry School: Barbara Barese, bareseb@bethel.k12.ct.us
• Johnson School: Racheal Caram, caramr@bethel.k12.ct.us
• Bethel Middle School: Kristen Thompson, thompsonk@bethel.k12.ct.us
• Bethel High School: Cheryl Hallock, hallockc@bethel.k12.ct.us, Sherri Dombroski dombroskis@bethel.k12.ct.us, or Maura Dundie, dundiem@bethel.k12.ct.us
A reminder, if health data remains consistent, a hybrid or transition to full will be:
• Johnson, Rockwell, and Berry Schools
o hybrid Tuesday, September 8th till Thursday, September 24th
o full in-person reopening on Tuesday, September 29th
• Bethel Middle School (6-8)
o hybrid Tuesday, September 8th – Friday, October 2nd
o full in-person reopening on Monday, October 5th
• Bethel High School
o hybrid Tuesday, September 8th by cohort A and B – full in-person reopening to be determined.
Sincerely,
Christine L. Carver, Ed.D.
Superintendent of Schools
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View previous letter HERE for more information “For families who have selected Distance Learning.”
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August 11, 2020 information regarding some health and safety issues:
We hope you are all safe and well. The pandemic, along with the recent storm Isaias power outages, have certainly made life challenging. We wanted to update you on some recent guidance that has come out of
the Department of Public Health and the Connecticut State Department of Education. Specifically the guidance addresses scenarios of response for:
I would urge you to read all of the guidance. What the guidance does not address is the actions taken by a school in the first two scenarios (listed above), in terms of triggering a school closure or cohort quarantine. If the third scenario occurs, it likely would not trigger any action by the school district, except asking the staff member or student to get tested and remain in quarantine for 14 days. Specifically, it would NOT trigger any type of closure or cohort quarantine unless the individual tested positive or developed COVID-19 symptoms. The district will communicate with families if there isa positive case within the schools. As stated in our parent presentation, we are prohibited from indicating the individual who has tested positive (HIPAA), but we will call you by phone if we think that you or your child was directly exposed or in close contact with a positive case.T
- Individuals (staff or student) who have symptoms of COVID-19, but have not had close contact with a positive case:
- Individuals (staff or student) who have symptoms of COVID-19, and had close contact with a positive case; and
- Individuals (staff or student) who do not have COVID-19 symptoms but have had close contact with someone diagnosed with COVID-19.
I would urge you to read all of the guidance. What the guidance does not address is the actions taken by a school in the first two scenarios (listed above), in terms of triggering a school closure or cohort quarantine. If the third scenario occurs, it likely would not trigger any action by the school district, except asking the staff member or student to get tested and remain in quarantine for 14 days. Specifically, it would NOT trigger any type of closure or cohort quarantine unless the individual tested positive or developed COVID-19 symptoms. The district will communicate with families if there isa positive case within the schools. As stated in our parent presentation, we are prohibited from indicating the individual who has tested positive (HIPAA), but we will call you by phone if we think that you or your child was directly exposed or in close contact with a positive case.
To keep everyone safe, we are asking that you do a daily screening for COVID-19 symptoms at home with your family. If you have any of those symptoms, please stay home and contact your medical doctor. In
attending a webinar with the Department of Public Health, the most significant COVID-19 symptoms are:
• Fever of 100.4 or higher;
• Chills;
• Uncontrolled NEW cough; and/or
• Loss of taste or smell.###
A reminder that if you have travelled to ANY of the states on the Governor’s Travel Restrictions you MUST quarantine for 14 days. There are no exceptions to this rule.
Shortly, you will receive an email asking you to update your demographic information in the Parent Portal. This information is more important than ever. We urge you to ensure that your telephone number and emergency contact information is up to date. We also ask that you ensure that your emergency contact is able to pick up your child within 30 minutes of calling.
I have been asked if we have received the guidance on “mask breaks”. The answer is no. As soon as I receive the information, I promise to let you know.
Lastly, for those students who are assigned to Cohort B, because they are not scheduled to start in person until Thursday, September 10th, we want to ensure that they have technology to attend Distance Learning on Tuesday and Wednesday. We will be distributing Chromebooks on Thursday, September 3rd and Friday, September 4th so they can participate in online learning. When you update your demographics, for planning purposes, parents of Pre-K through grade 5 students will also be asked in the Parent Portal to determine if your student(s) will need a school issued device to learn at home. We’d like to know this information ahead of time so we can plan for a timely distribution of devices if needed.
We appreciate your patience and support as we navigate through this unprecedented time. Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns.
Sincerely,
Christine L. Carver, Ed.D.
Superintendent of Schools
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