The Northborough Southborough Combined and Regional School Committee met on Dec. 16. Here are some highlights:
- A review of the COVID financial impact on the District showed that projected expenditures for Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) are higher than projected, but less for substitutes.
- Food Services is anticipating a loss of $144,160. Students being in the building less is a big factor. The hope is to offer popular ala cart options, such as pizza, and to gain usage of the remote free lunch program to all students through age 21. (Yes, if you have a college student home, they are eligible.) Sign up online or email Diane Cofer at dcofer@nsboro.k12.ma.us.
- Food Service staff reductions or redeploying current staff to other areas are being reviewed.
- The Algonquin Regional High School student newspaper The Harbinger was recognized nationally. It was one of 49 finalists selected from across the United States by the National Scholastic Press Association and one of 43 finalists selected from across the United States by Columbia Scholastic Press Association. Former Editors-in-Chief Catherine Hayden and Gabriela Paz-Soldan placed second in the country for 2019-2020 news story of the year from the National Scholastic Press Association for their article “This Bites, EEE’s impact on Algonquin,” which ran in the October 2019 edition.
- The Dramahawks broadcasted their hour-long show “The Show Must Go On (Line)” on Dec. 10-11, which consisted of a variety of performances, including solo, duet and ensemble performances, monologue performances and dance numbers. The theme was appropriately focused on resilience.
- The Guidance Department is moving along with the college admissions process, even though everything from student workshops, financial aid presentations and college admissions representative meetings are being done virtually.
- High School students will be COVID tested on Dec. 21 and 22 (this was optional) and will be remote the week of Christmas. The school committee also voted to have the high school remain remote after the holiday break so students can be tested again on Tues. Jan. 5 and Wed., Jan. 6. Hybrid learning will continue on Thurs., Jan. 7. The same company used for staff and faculty testing will be used for the student testing. There is a 12-24 hour turnaround time. Only 500 students signed up to participate in the first testing round, but will provide the district with data to get a sense of prevalence of the virus. The January testing dates will help to ensure that anyone testing positive after the holiday break does not return to the building.
- A student survey was conducted in November to gain a perspective on student learning experiences. Overall, considering the circumstances, they are satisfied. They miss social aspects and predictability of a typical year, but like the 8 am start on Mondays and rated teacher/student communication high. Students are more satisfied with their in-person learning days, but think those days are heavy with tests.
- The majority of students (58 percent) have between 3-6 hours of schoolwork during remote days. On those remote days, 54 percent responded that they have 1-2 classes with live teaching.
- A draft of the 2021-2022 student calendar was voted on to now include reference to Juneteenth (even though in 2021 school will be out for the summer by then) and the teacher professional day that was originally scheduled for Friday, October 29 will be moved to Monday, November 1.