Reopening Update: Welcome Back!

Dear North Smithfield Families,

I wanted to take a moment to welcome everyone back to a most unusual and challenging of new school years and give you a few updates.

Transportation

• Bus routes are now posted at https://www.dattcoschoolbus.com/my-childs-route/?did=6.
• Most of our buses can seat 77 passengers, but we are limited to 36 maximum
• Students must wear masks on buses and windows will be open.
• Students can double up in a seat if they are from the same family.  
• During our Hybrid “soft opening” we should be able to accommodate all riders. However, I have instructed the bus company that if they reach the 36 student maximum, and there are a few stops remaining along the route, they can temporarily exceed the cap. We will not leave students at the bus stop and will rebalance as needed.  
• Busing restrictions are one of our major impediments to expanding beyond the Hybrid model. I will be posting a survey in order to identify those who absolutely need AM and/or PM bus service and who can rely on parent pickup/dropoff or rideshares. 

Instruction

• Our teachers this year have a major challenge balancing at-home, in-person, and hybrid instruction. 
• We have new systems, procedures, and methods to meet our diverse learner academic and social-emotional needs. 
• Attached are two curriculum slide decks used during teacher orientation and training. 

Facilities

• Over the summer we have updated, serviced, and tuned our HVAC systems and have passed inspection by the Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH). 
• RIDOH also reviewed and approved our cleaning procedures, PPE, supplies, isolation rooms, and procedures. 
• Under the Hybrid, all classrooms can maintain 6 feet of social distancing between students.  

Concerns

These are potential issues I have shared with the School Committee during the past few meetings. Our goal is a Full Return, but in order to realize this we will have to address and weigh the following concerns:

• With a 36 student limit on a 77 seat bus, we will not be able to transport all students and will have to rely heavily on family and rideshare transportation to and from school. 
• To maintain 6 feet of social distancing within our classrooms, based on the average square footage of our classrooms, we are limited to 14-16 students per room. Under a Full Return model (minus the at-home learners), we will not be able to maintain the recommended 6 feet of social distance between student seats. While the RIDOH allows for as little as 3 feet of separation in a classroom, this is certainly not ideal. 
• Under Full Return, maintaining social distancing during arrivals, dismissals, cafeteria/meal services, and during the general movement of students, becomes exceptionally challenging.
• As I expressed at the school committee meetings, staffing is a concern in that we do not know who may have to go in and out of quarantine and there is a lack of substitute teacher coverage statewide. We will have to be very creative and flexible.
• Our student and staff safety is paramount. We must emphasize full compliance with mask-wearing and hand sanitizing. This is crucial to mitigate risks and permit expanding to Full Return where 6 feet of classroom social distancing is no longer possible. 

The Hybrid start will allow us to assess conditions and further organize based on the new reality and not on conjecture. It will allow students and teachers time to acclimate to the new processes and procedures.  As I mentioned at the beginning of this email, while I am confident that North Smithfield is up to any challenge, this one will take a whole community effort.  


Michael St. Jean,
Superintendent