O'Maley Family Focus

November 1, 2021

Dear O’Maley Families,

I hope you enjoyed the weekend and had a pleasant Halloween. As a reminder, there is no school across the District tomorrow due to election day voting.

We did resume our weekly group COVID testing this morning. Testers travel through the building and stop at classes. Students are expected to know they are signed up and to come out when the testers come by. Please be sure your child knows that they are signed up for testing. Information on signing up for testing can be found below in the COVID Update section of the newsletter.

There has been a bit of an uptick of students calling or texting home to ask family members to come and dismiss them. Our handbook does prescribe that students may no "self-dismiss" and may only be dismissed for illness after evaluation by our nurses. If your child contacts you because they are not feeling well, please direct them to the nurse before committing to picking them up. Many times a quick rest will revive them and they can make it through the school day.

Please read on and contact me at any time with questions or concerns.

Best,

Principal Lynne Beattie

Topics in this issue of Family Focus:

Upcoming Events
ALICE Safety Drills
Progressive Discipline Related to Mask Non-Compliance
COVID-19 Updates & Weekly Testing Sign-Up
School Picture Retakes
Schoolbrains Community Portal

Upcoming Events

Tuesday, November 2 - No School, Election Day
Tuesday, November 9 - Term 1 Ends
Thursday, November 11, 2021 - No School, Veterans Day
Tuesday, November 16 - Grades posted to Schoolbrains Portal
Thursday, November 18 - PTO 6:00-7:00 pm in the Learning Commons
Wednesday, November 24 - Pre-Thanksgiving Early Release at 11:00 am
Thursday 11/25 & Friday 11/26 - No School - Thanksgiving Holiday

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ALICE Lockdown/Evacuation Drills and Training

The safety and well being of students and staff is always foremost in our thoughts and plans at O’Maley. Our Student Support Team meets regularly to share information and to plan for student assistance and protection. Our District and School Incident Management Teams review evacuation procedures, and we collaborate with the Gloucester Police Department to plan various drills to prepare for emergency situations. One of those is an armed intruder school safety drill. As much as we wish we did not need to conduct such drills, national safety research recommends that we do.

We have scheduled our Fall drill for November 12th. The purpose of the drill is to provide an opportunity for students and staff to practice the research-informed Active Shooter/Armed Intruder procedures outlined in the O’Maley Innovation Middle School Emergency Response Plan. The procedures are based on the ALICE principles:

Alert: Call 911 immediately. Provide real-time information about the type and location of the event.
Lockdown: If evacuation is not safe, lockdown in a secure area. Barricade entry points.
Inform: Communicate real time information on the intruder’s location. Use clear and direct language.
Counter: If necessary, distract the attacker. Move toward exits. Throw objects or swarm.
Evacuate: Run from danger when safe to do so. Use any exit necessary.

In preparation for the upcoming drill, assemblies will be led by O’Maley administration and Gloucester Police Department to inform and train students. We will hold an assembly for 6th graders on November 4th and for 7th and 8th graders on November 9th. Procedures will be reviewed with staff members on November 9th as well. Given that drills of this nature can be trying for some students, we also prepare to support the social-emotional well being of students before, during, and after the training and drill.

Masking & Non-Compliance

Our staff appreciates all your efforts to support the Covid-19 protocols. We are aware that there is some mask fatigue setting in as we near the end of Term 1. More and more often, students are letting masks slip below their noses and mouths. In many cases they are resistant to redirection or they comply but need to be addressed multiple times within a single class. I am reaching out so that we can partner with you as we continue to promote the health and well-being of our community.

How can you help? Work with your child so he/she/they understand the importance of following school rules. Below is the guidance that I reviewed with students this morning, aligned with the processes we have in place for other non-compliance and safety infractions:

Follow proper mask-wearing practice - above the nose, and secure to the face.
Arrive at school each day with a properly fitting mask.
If your mask becomes unwearable or does not properly fit please get a new disposable mask for the remainder of the school day.
Students who must be repeatedly reminded by teachers/staff to properly wear a mask will face the following consequences:

First Referral - Verbal warning by admin & parent outreach
Second Referral - One hour of Detention - Reflection on the infraction - phone call home
Third Referral - Out of School Suspension or In-School Positive Alternative Consequences and Education program.

Please note that disciplinary actions come only after repeated requests and reminders, as well as contact home from teachers. We appreciate your continued support of the O’Maley community Covid-19 protocols. Thank you for your help as we navigate this pandemic together!

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COVID-19 Updates & Weekly Testing Sign-Up

COVID-19 at O'Maley: We had one new case of COVID-19 reported at O'Maley since our last update and currently have no active cases. There were no close contacts from the one case due to prior quarantine. Since we started school August 31st there have been a total of nine cases reported among the O'Maley community. See the new GPS COVID Dashboard for updated data each week: https://backtogether.gloucesterschools.com/updates/dashboard-covid-cases

Please remember to conduct a daily symptom check with your children. Link here for the daily symptom check information. Please be sure to call the nurses' office at 978-281-9847 if your child is experiencing any of the symptoms as described. Our nurses, Kim Cameron and Alycia Gossom can answer questions and will guide you as to what you need to do related to testing and/or documentation from your child's doctor. Students must not come to school with symptoms.

As we head toward the holiday season, please be aware of the COVID-19 Travel Guidelines. Link here for information on what is needed to return to school following travel.

To Sign Up for Weekly Testing: Link here: https://www.cic-health.com/consent/ma?district=Gloucester.I encourage families to sign their children up to be tested. Individuals signed up to participate last year DO need to re-register. Parents/Guardians MUST complete the form to give permission in order for a student to be tested.

Masks & Distancing: Per the Massachusetts DESE and the Gloucester School Committee, all students and staff will be masked in GPS buildings except at lunch or mask break when they are socially distanced at 3 feet or more. Per DESE, masks are required in public schools until at least January 15, 2022. Masks are not required outdoors. For details on our health and safety protocols district wide, please visit the GPS COVID Guidance and Updates website at https://backtogether.gloucesterschools.com/.

Students must bring their own masks to school each day. While we all wish we did not have to wear them, masks continue to be required indoors at school. Thank you!

School Picture Retakes - November 17th

The Schoolbrains Community Portal & Report Cards

To conserve paper, and to ensure that families have access to student performance information, report cards are not printed or sent home as a hard copy. Report cards for Term 1will be accessible in the Schoolbrains Community Portal at approximately 3:00 p.m. on November 16th.

Our Portal is open for all students and families, and parents/guardians who are new to the portal should have received an email containing your login information. If you did not receive an email, or already had one and have forgotten it, please email Mr. Destino, jdestino@gloucesterschools.com or Mr. Hurley, dhurley@gloucesterschools.com and they will send it to you.

Information about the portal, what you will find there, and how to login is below.

Parent Letter re. Schoolbrains Community Portal

Link to the Schoolbrains Community Portal Login

Student/Guardian How-to