| Matt Conway
mconway@thereminder.com
Category:
EAST LONGMEADOW – Discussion centered around the district’s updated health and quarantining protocols during the East Longmeadow School Committee meeting on Sept 20.
Nursing Director Kelly Labombard showcased a presentation detailing a daily symptom checklist for students and staff to utilize before attending school. Superintendent Gordon Smith advised for everyone to be considerate of serious symptoms, like shortness of breath and a fever over 100 degrees, rather than symptoms that could be synonymous with a common cold, such as a sore throat and fatigue.
The superintendent also highlighted what is to occur if students or teachers have a symptomatic household member. If the school attendee remains asymptomatic, they may come to school on the basis of isolating from the symptomatic person and wearing a mask at home until that person is cleared.
Cases are considered clear if they are reviewed by a physician, receive a negative PCR test or receive a negative molecular rapid test, according to Smith. These rules do not apply to vaccinated students or staff, but they are recommended to get tested five days after initial exposure. “If you know that you’ve been exposed, take the measures to the extent possible…until you’re through that five-to-seven-day window,” said Smith.
The superintendent said cases in the school were minimal at the time of the meeting, with Labombard sharing that most COVID-19 positive tests are traced from outside the school. “We really aren’t getting close contacts because we are following the rules,” said Labombard.
For the close contact cases occurring in schools, Smith explained that the school is acting in line with the Department of Education and Secondary Education’s mandates. Close contact cases who are not vaccinated will undergo quarantine protocols, while vaccinated students with no symptoms will be allowed to stay in school. Labombard also shared that 66 percent of students grades seven through 12 are fully vaccinated, which was met with encouraged reactions from the School Committee.
The East Longmeadow School Committee also discussed the town’s appropriation of a feasibility study as a part of the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA). The study will allow the district to receive 56.5 percent of funds from the MSBA on any eligible cost, according to Smith. The superintendent explained that the district will be compensated for purchases of at least $20,000 as increments are uploaded onto the MSBA’s online platform.
The East Longmeadow School Committee will meet again on Oct 5.