Larger Districts Hoping For Normalcy

By Lisa Massicotte and Michelle Warren, The Chronicle

June 11, 2021

As the number of COVID-19 cases in the area continues to drop, local school officials are hoping for more normalcy beginning next fall.

Many school staff members have already been vaccinated, as well as some students ages 12 and older.

With school districts completing their school year this month and somewhat normal high school graduation ceremonies expected, thoughts move to next school year.

While the plan for many local school districts is to start next year without a full remote learning option, officials are ready to make changes if necessary.

A major question regarding this path to normalcy is the vaccination status of all pupils, with children under 12 still not eligible.

Education leaders say that one factor, as well as whether COVID will flare up again after the summer, has them preparing for any eventuality.

“Flexibility is the name of the game,” Windham Superintendent of Schools Tracy Youngberg said.

Youngberg said school officials have worked closely with Hartford HealthCare to provide vaccination clinic options to 16- to 18-year-old students, as well as their eligible family members.

A survey was issued to determine how many of the eligible students and families were interested in getting vaccinated.

She said closed clinics were offered at Charles H. Barrows STEM Academy and Windham Community Memorial Hospital, but are no longer being offered now that vaccines are readily available and appointments are not necessary.

“Vaccination is, of course, not mandatory and we respect the rights of parents not to have their students vaccinated as well as the rights of our 18-year-old students to choose,” she said.

Youngberg said school nurses are the only staff members allowed to ask staff if they’ve been vaccinated and can only do so if an individual has been identified as a close contact during the contact tracing process.

However, Youngberg said — based on the turnouts for clinics held for staff earlier this spring, it was calculated that about 72 percent of staff were vaccinated at that time.

It is unknown how many staff have been vaccinated since then.

Youngberg said staff have been “amazingly resilient” this past year during the pandemic.

“They seem to be as comfortable as they can be under the circumstances,” she wrote in an email.

Youngberg said the state Department of Public Health has “made it clear” to superintendents the statewide data shows a clear drop in positive cases, hospitalizations and deaths for those who have been vaccinated.

Since May 17, schools in the district have been fully in-person for five days a week and, as of now, the plan is for that to continue in the fall.

“Students are no longer allowed to make the decision to change their learning model,” Youngberg said last week. “They are either fully in-person or virtual.”

However, the state has required COVID-19 mitigation strategies that are currently in place continue, including masking, social distancing and several others.

The board of education decided in May to implement an in-person learning program without a full remote learning option for the 2021-22 school year.

“I am looking forward to a full in-person return as it is the best way for our students to get back on track following a very challenging year and a half,” Youngberg said.

Mansfield Superintendent of Schools Kelly Lyman said she and school officials are glad to have COVID-19 vaccines for ages 12 and older as another strategy to keep schools safe.

Mansfield schools have been in-person at full capacity for the last couple months, according to Lyman.

“Beyond that, there’s the possibility of the Pfizer vaccine being approved for children under 12, but there’s nothing definitive on that yet,” Lyman said.

Lyman said the district has been working with the Eastern Highlands Health District (EHHD) and recently offered two vaccine clinics for children ages 12 to 15, as well as for other ages.

Looking ahead to the next school year, information on school vaccine policies is largely unknown, according to Lyman.

“We’re trying to support the community with dedicated clinics, but we can’t make any plans beyond that at this time,” she said.

Lyman said there aren’t any requirements for the vaccine in schools at this time.

“And until we have a legal opinion on whether or not that’s something we should be considering, we’re just trying to encourage as many people to receive the vaccine as possible,” she said.

The Mansfield school district is, however, making an attempt to keep track of student vaccination count on a voluntary basis.

“We asked parents voluntarily to share that information with us,” Lyman said last week.

Regional School District 19 Superintendent Sharon Cournoyer said the district is following guidance from the EHHD and the state Department of Public Health.

“It’s our hope that people take advantage of the vaccines at this point but it’s certainly not something that we are (requiring) unless there’s a legislative change,” she said.

An on-site first-dose vaccine clinic was held at E.O. Smith High School’s gym in collaboration with EHHD and UConn Health.

Cournoyer estimated the number of District 19 students between 16 to 18 who took advantage of the on-site clinic was in the 30s.

Students who received their first dose were able to get their second dose June 3 at the University of Connecticut Hawley Armory Clinic.

Additionally, for all schools, UConn Health and EHHD collaborated on two recent vaccination clinics that specifically targeted the 12-to-15 age group.

Those clinics were held May 25 at the Tolland High School gym and June 1 at the Coventry High School gym.

“According to students I’ve spoken to, they were excited for the opportunity because, for them, it afforded them a safer transition back to school,” Cournoyer said.

Currently, 32.92 percent of District 19’s approximately 1,100 students are still fully remote, she said.

The Chronicle has been an integral part of Eastern Connecticut since 1877. Our mission is to have a positive impact in the communities we serve through quality local journalism and involvement with all segments of the public. We encourage communication with our readers and advertisers to continually meet those objectives. Call 860-423-8466 or email feedback@theChronicle.com to participate.