SAUGUS — Saugus superintendent David DeRuosi laid out logistical details surrounding students’ return to in-person learning Jan. 19 in his virtual address to parents Wednesday.
“Our main focus, as it has been since we closed, is to maintain a safe and healthy environment to be ready when students return,” DeRuosi said. “Part of that process is to acclimate our students as they enter our buildings for the first time in over 10 months.”
Tuesday will be the first time Saugus students return to their brick and mortar classrooms since the COVID-19 pandemic forced schools across the Commonwealth to close last March.
Since then, the town has remained consistently in the state’s high-risk virus transmission category, which forced the district to remain completely remote even as surrounding communities made the tentative switch to hybrid learning plans.
However, during a School Committee meeting on Dec. 29 — during which the board unanimously voted for the district’s Jan. 19 return — Vice Chair Ryan Fisher said it was time for Saugus to make the transition.
“COVID is not going to get better,” Fisher said. “It’s going to ride itself out. So, now we have to pick a hard date and push ahead.”
DeRuosi said the week of return will be used as an orientation week, allowing students and staff to become acclimated to the change. Start time at the middle-high school complex will be 7:50 a.m., and start time for grade 5 will be 8:40 a.m.
Families that choose to be schooled remotely first but later decide to transition to hybrid learning must notify the superintendent’s office during the week of March 8. Families who partake in hybrid learning who later decide to switch to remote learning must follow the same procedure.
The shift for those families will begin the week of March 15.
As part of the transition to hybrid, special education services will be expanded from two to four days per week.
“We’ve had success with those programs, and we’ve had success with implementing all our safety protocols and procedures and they’ve worked well,” DeRuosi said. “Hats off to the staff and administration watching that.”
He said he’d also received several questions from parents regarding attendance.
“Attendance counts. (If a student is a part of) Cohort A, that would absolutely mean (that student) is expected to be in that class, in person, when Cohort A should be there,” DeRuosi said. “If for any reason your child will not be present in that classroom, you, the parent have to notify the school to let them know.”
Schedules will be provided to students the week of the 26th, although DeRuosi warned initial schedules are likely to be modified.
He added that the district’s policy has changed and students will no longer be allowed to wear bandanas and gaiter masks in place of other face coverings.
Parents and guardians should check their child’s school page for all return plans.
“It’s so important right now for everybody to understand that compliance with COVID safety policies will be strictly enforced,” DeRuosi said. “We have to, in order to ensure we can provide a safe, healthy environment for all students and staff.”
Elyse Carmosino can be reached at [email protected].
