NES WEEKLY UPDATE
MONDAY JULY 27, 2020
Latest Information
I will be using this tool to send weekly updates this summer. I hope everyone is safe and healthy.
I did get away to spend time with family in New York last week. It was such a treat to see my daughter, my dad, and my sister's and brother's families! I miss them, and my nieces and nephews are growing very quickly.
I want to share with you a few reminders that are so important for us as a school, a District, an island, and a Commonwealth. We need you to do these as soon as possible:
1. Parents must log onto ASPEN and complete the verification in the portal. If this does not get completed before August 1, the chromebooks will become disabled. This is so critical for making sure students and families continue to access the devices provided and will be needed for the future.
2. Complete the US census. This gives accurate information to the government to help support our schools and hospitals with funding, to reflect the numbers of people living here so we can get proper representation at the State and Federal government levels, etc. Please do your part to answer the census.
In addition, if you should be traveling this summer, please keep in mind the new regulations for entering or re-entering Massachusetts. It is important, we all do our part to keep each other safe and healthy. These are the rules as of 8/1/20:
- All visitors and Massachusetts residents returning home — including students returning to campuses this fall — must fill out a “Massachusetts Travel Form” and quarantine for 14 days. People can also text MATraveler to 888-777.
- Exemptions include travelers from lower-risk states and people who can show a negative COVID-19 test administered no more than 72 hours prior to arriving in the Bay State. The current low-risk states are New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Maine, Rhode Island, Vermont, New Hampshire and Hawaii.
- People must remain in quarantine until they receive negative test results, except for when going to get their test.
- Failure to comply can result in a $500 fine per day.
- Exceptions include people passing through or commuting across state lines for work, military personnel, critical infrastructure workers, and people seeking or receiving medical treatment.
I am sure you have received emails from the Superintendent Dr. Elizabeth Hallett. She sends these weekly (also on Mondays). It is our collective hope to keep you as informed as we can through this challenging process. We continue to receive updates and requirements from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. We, the NPS District Leadership Team, met several times last week to complete the preliminary planning documents that are due to the DESE as of 7/31/20. These documents include the feasibility of having all students and staff return to school in September (full in person), remote learning for all, and hybrid (some in person and some remote). To complete these documents we solicited information from staff, administration, families, and community members. Dr. Hallett's email later today will include the draft of our preliminary plan.
We must work together to create the best plans for our students. I ask for patience and understanding as we work through this. I will do my very best to share as much information as I can as often as I can. Thank you for completing the surveys we send out. Your feedback has been incredibly helpful. If you have not yet completed the transportation one yet, please do so by tomorrow at the latest. It is attached at the bottom of this newsletter.
The next survey we will be sending out soon, will be one that is seeking your commitment to the hybrid learning model (some in-person days, some remote learning) or to full remote learning. This will assist us greatly in allocating staff and creating classroom cohorts of students.
Thank you in advance for your anticipated and continued support and understanding. I am so grateful!
Warmly,
Kimberly Kubisch, Principal NES
Office Hours
Kimberly Kubisch is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
Join Zoom Meeting https://zoom.us/j/96555183905?pwd=QVZmSDRuYldrZWJUVU5LTGNjelJFQT09 Meeting ID: 965 5518 3905 Passcode: nvY3sS
Parent/Community Advisory Committee
Dr. Hallett has convened a group of community and NPS parent members to meet weekly to discuss all re-entering information. Should you have any questions or concerns feel free to email them. They will share your ideas with the entire committee. We will use this information to help inform our District planning.
Members to Contact
Rocky (Anthony) Fox
Nantucket native, business owner, substitute
Vanessa Rendeiro
NES bilingual parent
Jean Witt
NES/SNAC parent
Micajah (Wiley) Mastriano
NES parent
Tech updates and Devices
If you currently have an NES device at home that isn't working or you do not need it, please feel free to put it in the box outside of NIS. This is a collection box for all four of our schools.
ABOUT NES
Principal
Kimberly F. Albertson
Assistant Principal
Email: kubischk@npsk.org
Website: www.npsk.org
Location: 30 Surfside Road, Nantucket, MA, USA
Phone: 508 228 7290