Waltham Public Schools Release Coronavirus Safety Guidelines

Waltham MA

26 August, 2021

2:17 PM

Description

WALTHAM, MA — Waltham Public Schools has released their COVID-19 safety guidelines ahead of the upcoming school year, which is set to begin on Tuesday, August 31. The details of this year's safety policy were sorted out following the Waltham School Committee unanimously passing a district-wide mask mandate at a special meeting last week. "We are happy to have gotten the school committee's support," said Superintendent Brian Reagan. "We will continue [the mandate] until we feel like we don't have to." In addition to requiring students, staff, and visitors to wear masks, the district will try to maximize distance between students and minimize outside visitors, which were not allowed at all last year. Events such as Back to School Night and school dances are being planned to take place in person, but may run in multiple shifts to allow for space. As far as COVID-19 testing goes, the district has decided to start the year by offering diagnostic testing instead of pooled testing, which was offered to students last year but had a participation rate of less than 20%. Diagnostic testing gives schools the ability to test symptomatic individuals or asymptomatic close contacts. Parents who consent to their students receiving diagnostic tests automatically consent to pooled testing if the school decides to switch methods mid-year. "Lets say that the metrics in the city start to spike, we may shift to a pool testing approach at a specific school," said Reagan. "Parents who agree will consent to both." Although the district does not have a vaccine mandate for staff members, Reagan said he is hoping for leadership from the state on that front, as the Massachusetts Teachers Association has already expressed its approval of such a measure. "It's student vaccination that I'm most concerned about," said Reagan, who estimates that over 80% of Waltham Public Schools staff are already vaccinated and plans to set up at-school vaccination clinics over the next few months. Updated information on COVID-19 safety protocols at Waltham Public Schools can be found here.