February 5, 2021 Update

Not sure if folks knew this or not, but this past week was School Counselor Week...and we have some of the best here in Gorham!  THANK YOU to our school counselors for their hard work and tireless dedication to our students:

*. Great Falls Elementary School - Ellen Berry

*. Village Elementary School - Becky Hayward, Stacey Sawyer

*. Narragansett Elementary School - Rachel Dunbar

*. Gorham Middle School - Heather Richards/Samantha McCloghry

*. Gorham High School - Betsy Anastasoff, Trisha Cherry, Kate Stevens and Samantha McCloghry

The image below was created and posted by Village Elementary School Staff to say thank you to their school counselor...but I think they wouldn't mind if I used it to honor all of our counselors.  THEY TRULY ARE ANGELS THAT WALK AMONG US...especially during this crazy pandemic!  THANK YOU for all you do to support our students and hold our schools together!

Now onto the updates!

COVID 19 TRAVEL REMINDERS 

As February break is right around the corner, I thought it would be a good idea to remind folks about travel restrictions that remain in place as we continue to battle COVID 19.  Rules really haven't changed much since the last holiday break...but just to be clear if students or staff travel outside of Maine, New Hampshire, or Vermont during the break, they must:

-  EITHER Quarantine for 10 days upon return to the state OR provide a negative COVID 19 test result within 72 hours of return to the state before being able to return to school.

The one change that was made to this rule was for those who have tested positive for COVID 19 within the last 90 days.  If a student or staff member has tested positive for COVID 19 within the last 90 days and is outside of the required isolation time frame (in other words - you have recovered) you are not required to quarantine for 10 days or provide a negative test.  You would, however have to produce documentation of the positive COVID 19 test result within 90 days in order to return to school.  

As always, if you have questions, please reach out to your school nurse and they can help to guide you through requirements so you can plan appropriately.  If you think your travel plans may impact your child's ability to return to school promptly on Feb. 22, 2021 you should reach out to your child's school nurse or principal to ensure they are aware.  They can assist in guiding you to ensure students to not unnecessarily miss important instructional time. As always, your proactive communication with the schools is so very much appreciated!  THANK YOU!

SUMMER SUPPORT PROGRAMS OVERVIEW - MORE DETAILS TO COME

Believe it or not, I've already had some folks ask me about what the schools may be planning for summer support for students as families begin to look ahead and plan for their summers.  I can understand why folks would be thinking summer right about now, as the winter continues to roll on here in Maine.  So I thought I'd provide at least an initial overview of some of the additional support programming we have on the horizon in both the shorter and longer term.  I don't have specific details yet about staffing, or which students will be eligible for these programs as that is yet to be determined through RTI processes at the schools later this spring, but hopefully this information will provide parents with a sense of what to expect at least enough to plan around the summer.  

We will be planning five different programs this summer.  The first is a program we offer each year to those special education students who qualify.  This program is called our Extended School Year Program or ESY.  Qualifying students will participate in this program for either 4 or 6 weeks depending upon need.  This program will begin on July 6 and run through August 13 (for the 6 week program).  The second program is also another program we offer each year to high school students.  This program is our credit recovery program.  This is for students who were close to earning specific credits during the course of the year, but fell just short.  This program allows students to "recover" credits over the course of the summer.  There are specific requirements for students to be allowed to participate in this program.  If you have questions, please reach out to the GHS office or your child's guidance counselor and they can help you navigate.  

The next few summer programs will be new this year.  The first will be offered for all students in grades K-8.  This will be paid access to an online learning program called IXL in the areas of math and reading.  Students/families who would like to utilize this program over the summer on their own time and around their own unique summer schedules will be provided a sign up opportunity this spring along with some training sessions on how to utilize the program and then access to the program will be open for use all summer long.  We'll ask families who are interested in participating to sign up later this spring, so be thinking and feel free to ask your child's teachers about IXL as we currently use it across grades K-8 so they can help give you insights!  

The second new summer program will be a three week program for RTI Tier III students that will run from June 14 - July 2, 2021 REMOTELY.  The program will operate on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays during this three week period.  This program will basically extend the Personal Learning Plans (PLP's) for these Tier III students for this three week time frame.  Students will work remotely in small groups of 2-3 students with one learning facilitator to extend their PLP work in an effort to mitigate any "summer slide" concerns that may exist and to ensure these students are best prepared to return to school ready for success!

The third and final new summer program will be a six week, three day per week (T,W,TH), program for specifically identified students determined to be most in need of a summer learning boost through school based RTI processes across grades K-8.  This program will identify 10 students per grade level for this exciting summer learning opportunity.  Students who qualify will participate in a six week summer learning program focused on providing instruction in the areas of math, literacy, and social/emotional learning.  Students will attend these more "academic" learning programs each morning from 9:00 - 11:00 a.m. and then our plans are to offer students lunch and then a paid "membership" to participate in Gorham Recreation summer fun activities each afternoon.  

Again, more details to come, but wanted families to be aware of what we are thinking of for summer learning supports.  We will work to keep you informed as we get closer to summer.  

DID YOU KNOW?  COVID 19 VACCINATION FACTS

 Current Vaccines with FDA emergency use authorization include:

• Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine. This vaccine has an efficacy rate of 95%. This means that about 95% of people who get the vaccine are protected from an infection with the COVID-19 virus. This vaccine is for people age 16 and older. It requires two injections given 21 days apart. The second dose can be given up to six weeks after the first dose, if needed.
• Moderna COVID-19 vaccine. This vaccine has an efficacy rate of 94.1%. This vaccine is for people age 18 and older. It requires two injections given 28 days apart. The second dose can be given up to six weeks after the first dose, if needed.

Both the Pfizer-BioNTech and the Moderna COVID-19 vaccines use messenger RNA (mRNA). Coronaviruses have a spike-like structure on their surface called an S protein. COVID-19 mRNA vaccines give cells instructions for how to make a harmless piece of an S protein. After vaccination, your cells begin making the protein pieces and displaying them on cell surfaces. Your immune system will recognize that the protein doesn't belong there and begin building an immune response and making antibodies.

For information about Maine's COVID 19 vaccination program, CLICK HERE. 

SAVE THE DATE K-12 PARENT FORUM WITH SUPERINTENDENT PERRY ON THE TOPIC OF DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION IN OUR SCHOOLS

As I work to put the finishing touches on my "Listening Tour" Findings, I thought it would be important to get a "save the date" out there to families interested in learning more about the initial results.  I have spent the past five months meeting with groups of students, individual students, surveying staff and parents and meeting with individual staff and parents to gather their recent stories and lived experiences in these areas and am now almost ready to share in an effort to begin a more public dialogue on this important subject. I must say, the stories I've been able to collect thus far are powerful. The details and format of the meeting are yet to be worked out, but the date is set.  Please mark your calendars for Wednesday, March 31, 2021 at 6:30 p.m.!  I'll share the meeting link and a reminder in a future blog post and will also be sure to link it into our district calendar.  Stay Tuned for more details!

THANK YOU GHOP FOR SUPPORTING GORHAM H.S. SENIORS!

On Thursday, Feb. 11, 2021 10% of GHOP food sales will go to support Project Graduation for GHS Seniors!  If you are thinking about what to do for lunch or dinner on Thursday...think GHOP and help raise funds to support Project Grad.  THANK YOU GHOP for being a constant supporter of our schools and the children we serve!

FAMILY READ ALOUD RESOURCES

Earlier this week we celebrated "World Read Aloud Day" here in the Gorham Schools.  As awesome as that is... reading aloud to children is AWESOME EVERY DAY...not just one day per year!  As part of the world wide celebration an incredible video resource library was created for families to use that I thought would be valuable well beyond just this one day.  CHECK OUT THE LINK BELOW and find links to LOTS OF INCREDIBLE read aloud resources that could provide hours of literacy fun with your children!  Check it out by CLICKING HERE.

ASPIRE GORHAM FEBRUARY NEWSLETTER READY TO VIEW!

The February edition of the Aspire Gorham Newsletter is ready for viewing.  This month's newsletter highlights the stories of two of our incredible seniors - Jaela Boucher and Shey Ajayi.  Check out their stories and more by CLICKING HERE!

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GO RAM SENIORS!

That's it for this week.  Looking forward to our 22nd week of face to face instruction in our hybrid model next week...and then a well deserved break for all!  Have a great weekend!