Dear Students, Families, and Staff Members,
The number of positive cases statewide and locally continues to decrease substantially this past week. However, the data, while promising, is not below one of the thresholds necessary to return to school in the hybrid model for next week. Each Thursday evening the Department of Public Health releases the city/town and Berkshire County data updates for the previous 14 day period. The most recent data has shown that there is a decrease in the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the city, county, and state.
The benchmarks that we use to determine if there is community spread that warrants moving to remote learning include:
- 3% positivity rate for the City of North Adams: Current rate is 1.68%.
- 3% average positivity rate for 15 collective towns and cities that represent locations where staff or students who enter North Adams Public Schools reside: Current rate is 3.59%.
The 3.59% positivity rate for the 15 collective towns has triggered the continuation of remote learning through February 12, 2021. The winter break begins with President’s Day on Monday, February 15, 2021 and continues through to Friday, February 19, 2021. There is no school and no remote classes for students on these days. School will reconvene on Monday February 22, 2021 in the hybrid model for students in Cohort A. We will begin our COVID Pooled Testing Program that week. Please look for the announcement for an online parent/guardian forum for Tuesday, February 9th, at 6:30 pm. This forum will provide background and information on informed consent for this program. I will be joined by Dr. Daniel Doyle from Berkshire Health Systems to discuss the benefits of a school wide testing program to help open our schools and hopefully keep them open longer. Please see the letter to parents and guardians dated February 4, 2021 for more information on the North Adams Public Schools participation in pooled testing. More information can also be found at the Department of Education website at: https://www.doe.mass.edu/covid19/pooled-testing/.
With a strong desire to return to “normal”, it might be tempting to gather for a celebration for the Superbowl. However, we know that we can successfully reduce the rate of infection by some simple consistent practices:
- Wearing a mask in public
- Physical distancing
- Limiting capacity at gatherings
- Practicing good personal hygiene
It is critically important for all of us to contribute to our health and well being by maintaining these practices, staying home and away from others, and getting tested to know for certain that you are not contagious.
COVID- 19 Symptoms
If you or your child develops any symptoms associated with COVID-19, it is important that you quarantine and schedule a test to confirm your illness. Symptoms may appear 2-14 days after exposure to the virus. People with these symptoms may have COVID-19:
- Fever or chills
- Cough
- Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
- Fatigue
- Muscle or body aches
- Headache
- New loss of taste or smell
- Sore throat
- Congestion or runny nose
- Nausea or vomiting
- Diarrhea
Look for emergency warning signs for COVID-19. If someone is showing any of these signs, seek emergency medical care immediately:
- Trouble breathing
- Persistent pain or pressure in the chest
- New confusion
- Inability to wake or stay awake
- Bluish lips or face
Call your medical provider for any other symptoms that are severe or concerning to you.
COVID-19 Testing
Rapid PCR testing is available in the office of North Berkshire Pediatrics. This test is for their patients who have any symptoms that could possibly be due to COVID or if the patient is asymptomatic and has been exposed to someone with COVID. The test result is available in 15 minutes and the practice is available to see these patients 7 days a week. There is increased availability and faster turnaround times for results through BMC: the North Adams testing site is open 7 days a week from 8:30-4 by appointment (call 855-BMC-LINK) and the tests are now being sent to the Broad Institute which has a slightly greater than 24 hours turnaround time.
It is my sincerest hope that all of our families, staff and community members can remain in good health and do those things that will help us to get back to school in the coming weeks.
Thank you.
Dr. Barbara Malkas