GARDNER — The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) has asked local officials for more information about their school reopening plans.
Public schools in the city opened under a fully remote learning model this month in response to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
In a letter to Mayor Michael Nicholson, DESE Commissioner Jeffrey C. Riley said that based on the current COVID-19 public health data Massachusetts is one of the states with sufficiently low test positivity rates to meet World Health Organization standards for reopening schools to full in-person learning. Additionally, Riley wrote that state public health officials reported a very low COVID-19 transmission rate in the district.
“As of September 16, the two-week positivity rate (in the state) is at 0.9 percent, well below the threshold of five percent established by WHO,” according to the letter.
Riley wrote that he was concerned that the Gardner School Committee had voted to keep most students learning remotely for the start of the 2020-2021 school year.
“We have recommended remote learning only for those municipalities receiving a ‘red’ designation three weeks in a row on the color-coded metric unless the district identifies other extenuating circumstances that prevent in-person instruction,” Riley wrote, referring to the Department of Public Health’s reports based on the average daily cases per 100,000 residents in the community. “Since the inception of the weekly DPH color-coded reports, your community has consistently received a designation of green or gray, which indicates very low COVID-19 transmission in your municipality.”
The district is one of 16 communities deemed to be low-risk enough to allow students back into the classroom, and school officials have until Monday, Sept. 28, to respond to the Riley letter. The district could be audited by the state to assess its overall efforts to provide in-person instruction and to ensure its remote learning program complies with state regulations.
“In light of the stark discrepancy between local public health data and your reopening plan, I am requesting a timeline by which you anticipate in-person instruction for the majority of your students including in-person instruction for vulnerable populations, such as students with disabilities, if these students have not already returned to in-person school,” Riley wrote.
Superintendent Dr. Mark Pellegrino said the School Committee is committed to moving the district to a hybrid educational model, and that he is sure members will be able to respond to Riley’s letter and address his concerns.
“The School Committee and I have been focused on moving our instructional model from remote to hybrid since we started planning in early June,” Pellegrino said. “We felt it was important to begin (remotely) to allow the district time to ensure every classroom HVAC system is fully operational, that our schools are adequately staffed, and teachers have had the support, training and time to focus on the necessary skills to deliver an exemplary remote learning program.”
Getting remote learning right is crucial because more than three-fifths of the hybrid model actually involve learning via remote technology, he said.
“I have been thrilled with the improvements the district has made, including securing enough devices so the entire district now has one-to-one Chromebooks,” Pellegrino said. “Additionally, the top-of-the-line Chromebooks we purchased for our teachers, along with the communications and curriculum software, has aided their efforts. Ultimately, the instruction from our teachers has been excellent. In a very short time, they have become proficient with an entirely new way to deliver their instruction.”
