NPS COVID Update
January 14, 2022
Medical Advisory Group Recommendation
The Newton Public Schools Medical Advisory Group met on January 5, 2022 to discuss the current COVID surge and any changes or adjustments that might be necessary given the higher case counts. Topics covered included masks, meals, testing, and meeting/activities. You can review the recommendations from the meeting here: Medical Advisory Group - January 5, 2022 Recommendation. This Tuesday, January 18, members of the Medical Advisory have been invited to discuss the recommendations publicly at a special School Committee meeting at 7:30 p.m. You can find the Zoom link for the meeting by going to the School Committee site.
Change to Positive Cases Data Reporting
Newton HHS has made an adjustment to reporting positive cases of COVID in our schools. The change will bring them into alignment with changes made at the state level. What is the major change? Newton HHS will now include at-home antigen (rapid) tests reported to the school in the total case count for the week. More details below, as explained in the mayor’s newsletter yesterday:
Prior to the winter break, both DESE and the City reported only verifiable positive tests (PCR or antigen tests done by a healthcare provider, at a pharmacy/testing site, or as part of Newton Public School (NPS) testing) for NPS students and staff.
Over the December winter break, DESE made a change. They started including unproctored at-home antigen tests in their reporting. Our HHS staff, however, reported only verifiable positive tests, consistent with prior practice. (Also, DESE’s data report posted on Jan. 6 covered a two-week period from Dec. 23 to Jan. 5 while the City’s report covered a one-week period from Dec. 30 to Jan. 5, another discrepancy.)
HHS has now adopted the DESE reporting protocols when reporting school cases and will include verifiable tests and at-home rapid tests. Case counts should now more closely match state data. Differences in reporting time periods may account for slight discrepancies. You can always view total weekly case counts on the Newton HHS COVID Data Page. It is updated weekly.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Ceremony
While not COVID related, we did want to make sure you were aware of one of the events we cherish in Newton - the City's annual Martin Luther King Day celebration. While we will miss not joining in person as a community for a second year, the event still provides a meaningful opportunity for personal and community reflection. The music is also guaranteed to be terrific and features NPS students and faculty.
Here is a link to the event information on the City of Newton website:
https://www.newtonma.gov/government/mayor-fuller/special-projects-and-initiatives/newton-mlk-day
Attendees must pre-register to attend the event. Here is the registration link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_TMuyfe_iQKqGqA5mIyk-xw
Newton Public Schools
Website: www.newton.k12.ma.us
Location: 100 Walnut Street, Newton, MA, USA
Phone: (617) 559-6000
Facebook: www.facebook.com/newtonps
Twitter: @newton_ps