SAUGUS — The Saugus School Committee will hold an additional meeting at the end of the month to assess the district’s return to in-person learning.
The announcement follows the board’s October decision to postpone students’ return to physical school buildings until at least Jan. 4.
“People just aren’t doing what they need to be doing,” Chair Thomas Whittredge said during Tuesday’s School Committee meeting. “Numbers are skyrocketing … I think the responsible thing to do is to reassess where we’re at closer to the end of the year.”
Whittredge — one of two board members who initially voted against the late return to in-person learning — said he was now having second thoughts about sending students back to school so soon after the holiday season, which experts warn may result in case spikes as families continue to gather with others outside their households.
“We can’t just come back from New Year’s and go to school on the 4th and have all these cases from Christmas,” said Whittredge, who has previously been a staunch advocate for reopening the district’s schools for hybrid learning. “That’s going to be the issue. It would be great to get the kids back into class, but it would be better if we had teachers in front of them.”
Saugus educators began teaching classes remotely from inside school buildings on Sept. 16. Since the committee’s October vote, the district has reported five cases of COVID-19 among staff members, including four within the past week.
Vice Chair Ryan Fisher said the town’s current post-Thanksgiving spike has been much bigger than he initially anticipated, noting that as of Tuesday, Saugus had reported 360 active cases within the community.
In total, the town has reported a total of 1714 virus cases since the pandemic began in March.
“My guess is the state itself will have a conversation about this as these numbers come out, but I’m hopeful we can still stick to Jan. 4 when we meet,” he said.
Board member Dennis Gould agreed.
“I’d love to see Jan. 4 work, but it’s going to take some responsibility from the adults,” he said. “All of us really have to pick it up (during) the next few weeks. This is serious stuff.”
During the committee’s final meeting in late December, Whittredge requested the board make its decision based on the town’s case numbers at that time.
“If we’re skyrocketing, there’s no sense putting people at risk,” he said.
