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IMPORTANT SOMSD COMMUNITY UPDATE: High Transmission Essex County CALI Score Leads to Increased Quarantine Period for Unvaccinated Individuals

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IMPORTANT UPDATE

December 9, 2021

Spanish Translation: bit.ly/3lQvAkz   | Haitian Creole Translation:  bit.ly/3IBzFCL

Good Evening SOMSD Community & Staff: 

Please read this important update as received from the South Orange and Maplewood Departments of Health this afternoon:

“The weekly COVID Activity Level Index (CALI) report for the state of NJ was recently released. The entire state is now considered as HIGH transmission. Therefore, we are reverting back to a 14-day quarantine for those who are unvaccinated and exposed while we are considered as countywide high transmission as per NJDOH.  During a 14-day quarantine, unvaccinated individuals may NOT test out of quarantine.”

What this means for UNVACCINATED District students/staff:

  • As per the new guidelines any unvaccinated District student or staff person who is exposed to COVID-19 must now quarantine for 14 full days (Note: Providing a negative COVID test result during quarantine will not allow the unvaccinated staff/student to return to school facilities.  The individual must complete the full 14-day quarantine period).
  • During a student’s quarantine period, they will receive virtual instruction.  Please note while we will strive to minimize the disruption to student learning during the quarantine period by having systems in place for students to receive virtual instructional support, these structures will vary depending on the circumstances.  

We are asking the SOMSD community members to renew their pandemic diligence by continuing to wear masks, practicing physical distancing, hand hygiene, respiratory etiquette, staying home when sick, and getting tested if symptomatic.  

For more information/details, view the NJ Regional COVID Activity Report: https://www.nj.gov/health/cd/statistics/covid/

The District is continuing to update the Fall 2021 Return to School Guidebook [https://bit.ly/SOMSDFallGuidebook] as information is received at the federal, state, and local levels. 

We highly promote vaccination of all individuals ages 5 and up and thank you for your continued commitment to stopping the spread of COVID-19 and helping us care for your children and the SOMSD community. 

Sincerely,

South Orange & Maplewood School District

Elementary Schools: Report Cards Available Online via PowerSchool

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Click here for instructions on how to access/download report cards:  bit.ly/3d9zCjq

Haga clic aquí para la traducción al español:  bit.ly/3lnH3HV

Klike la a pou Tradiksyon Kreyòl Ayisen:  bit.ly/3xL8T6f

December 1, 2021

Dear Elementary School Families,

Over the next few days, you will be meeting with your child’s teacher for family/teacher conferences.  We hope that you take this opportunity to understand how your child is performing academically, and coping socially and emotionally at this point in the school year.  

During this meeting, your child’s teacher will review your child’s report card.  Parents/guardians can access, view, and print the reports by logging into their PowerSchool account via the parent portal here: https://powerschool.somsd.k12.nj.us/public/

If you have any problems accessing your Parent Portal account questions please feel free to email us at: parentportalhelp@nullsomsd.k12.nj.us.

We hope you find your time with your child’s teacher to be useful and informative.  Please reach out to your child’s teacher if you have not yet scheduled a parent/teacher conference.

South Orange & Maplewood School District

SOMSD Community Thanksgiving Break Travel/Quarantine Guidelines & Survey (Submissions Due By: Mon., Nov. 22)

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Link to: Thanksgiving Break Travel Survey

(ONLY FAMILIES WHO PLAN TO TRAVEL DOMESTICALLY (OUTSIDE OF PA, NJ, NY, CT, DE) OR INTERNATIONALLY w/ UNVACCINATED CHILDREN SHOULD FILL OUT THIS FORM)

November 16, 2021

Dear SOMSD Community,

As you are aware, the Thanksgiving Break is November 25 & 26, 2021. District schools and Central Office will be closed. Schools and District offices will reopen on Monday, November 29, 2021.

The District will collect information from parents/guardians of unvaccinated students who plan on traveling either domestically (outside of PA, NJ, NY, CT, DE) or outside of the United States during the Thanksgiving break. To keep our students, staff and community safe, unvaccinated students will need to quarantine before returning to school.

Note the following:

  • UNVACCINATED students will be asked to quarantine for a full seven to ten days depending on testing.
  • Quarantine may be seven full days if students test negative on days 3, 4, or 5 after returning from travel. If you choose not to test, quarantine is ten full days.
  • This guidance is per our local SOMA Departments of Health as informed by NJDOH and CDC.
  • If your child is fully vaccinated, they do NOT need to quarantine (unless they have symptoms).
  • If you recently opted to have your child vaccinated in accordance with the new CDC endorsement and recommendation for children 5 to 11 years old against COVID-19 with the Pfizer pediatric vaccine, please note that your child will NOT be considered fully vaccinated until TWO WEEKS AFTER they receive their second dose of the vaccine (which is after we return from Thanksgiving Break).

Everyone’s continued compliance is necessary to keep the members of our school community healthy and safe.

Please refer to the communication sent to parents on Friday, October 22 for a full description of the requirements which are still applicable. [https://bit.ly/3pqq8rk]

During a student’s quarantine period, they will receive virtual instruction. Please note that we strive to minimize the disruption to student learning during the quarantine period by having systems in place for students to receive virtual instructional support that is commensurate with their normal school day. Again, it is imperative that families of UNVACCINATED students who plan to travel during the Thanksgiving break, outside of the PA, NJ, NY, CT, and DE areas fill out the Thanksgiving Break Travel Survey by Monday, November 22.

Thanksgiving Break Travel Survey:  https://forms.gle/FtgUW8h2hk8ihRAr5

South Orange & Maplewood School District

SOMSD Community Fall Break Travel/Quarantine Guidelines & Survey (Submissions Due By: Tues., October 26)

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Download Letter PDF | English Google Doc Version |  Spanish Translation | Haitian Creole Translation

Link to:  Fall Break Travel Survey

(ONLY FAMILIES WHO PLAN TO TRAVEL DOMESTICALLY (OUTSIDE OF PA, NJ, NY, CT, DE) OR INTERNATIONALLY w/ UNVACCINATED CHILDREN SHOULD FILL OUT THIS FORM)

October 21, 2021

Dear SOMSD Community,

The District’s Fall Break is coming up and is scheduled for November 1 – 5, 2021.  All District schools, as well as Central Office, will be closed for this week.  Schools and District offices will reopen on Monday, November 8, 2021. 

This letter is to inform you that if you plan on traveling either domestically (outside of PA, NJ, NY, CT, DE) or outside of the United States, upon reentry to our school district, UNVACCINATED students will be asked to quarantine for a full seven to ten days depending on testing.  Quarantine may be seven full days if students test negative on days 3, 4, or 5 after returning from travel. If you choose not to test, quarantine is ten full days.  This guidance is per our local SOMA Departments of Health as informed by NJDOH and CDC.  Everyone’s compliance is necessary to keep the members of our school community healthy and safe. 

During a student’s quarantine period, they will receive virtual instruction.  Please note while we will strive to minimize the disruption to student learning during the quarantine period by having systems in place for students to receive virtual instructional support, these structures will vary depending on the circumstances.  Therefore, families of UNVACCINATED students who plan to travel during the fall break, outside of the PA, NJ, NY, CT, and DE areas will need to fill out the Fall Break Travel Survey by Tuesday, October 26.  [Link: https://forms.gle/9sUCZVeJ7SZqPQvq8].

  • Elementary Students:   For elementary students who will be traveling, parents/guardians must fill out the Fall Break Travel Survey by Tuesday, October 26, so that they have adequate notice that your child will be in quarantine post-Fall break.   Families who submit their survey by the due date will receive the appropriate details and links for virtual learning from their child’s teacher.
  • Unvaccinated Middle School Students:  For unvaccinated middle school students who will be traveling, parents/guardians must fill out the Fall Break Travel Survey by Tuesday, October 26, to inform the school that their child will need to quarantine due to travel.  Families who submit their survey by the due date will receive the appropriate details and links for virtual learning from their child’s teacher.
  • Unvaccinated CHS Students:  For unvaccinated high school students who will be traveling, parents/guardians must fill out the Fall Break Travel Survey by Tuesday, October 26, to inform the school that their child will need to quarantine due to travel.  Families who submit their survey by the due date will receive the appropriate details and links for virtual learning from their child’s teacher.

Families can receive testing via our partner, MediMobile.  MediMobile is on-site every Saturday, 9 am – 3 pm at the CHS Gymnasium parking lot (in inclement weather, MediMobile will be in the CHS cafeteria – – Parker Avenue entrance).  In addition, you can find additional testing locations for Essex County on our website:  https://bit.ly/C19Test_Vaccine. See below for the travel guidelines quarantine chart.

Grade Levels Travel  Guidelines Outside of PA, NJ, NY, CT, DE

[Guidelines have been in place since 5/2021. The NJDOH refers us to the CDC who recommends delaying travel until you are fully vaccinated]
PreK – 5

And all Unvaccinated individuals

 The day you return from travel is DAY ZERO

7-full-day Quarantine if the negative test is taken on day 3, 4, or 5 after return:

  • PCR or Rapid.  
  • A home-based test result is acceptable in the case of travel as long as the individual is not symptomatic.  If symptomatic, stay home from school and get a laboratory test.  Report positive tests to the principal.

OR

10-full-day Quarantine if choosing not to test and do not have symptoms

  • If symptomatic, stay home from school and get a laboratory test.  Report positive tests to the principal.

For International travel guidance: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/testing-international-air-travelers.html
6 – 12 

 
  • Unvaccinated students will be governed by the quarantine guidelines above. 
  • Fully vaccinated individuals do not have to quarantine if they do not have symptoms. Remember, if symptomatic, stay home from school and get a laboratory test. Report positive results to the principal. [Reminder: Parents/guardians of students ages 12 and up are encouraged to upload/share proof of student COVID-19 vaccine, this will help identify students who may NOT have to quarantine*: https://bit.ly/SOMSDSVS]
  • For International travel guidance: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/testing-international-air-travelers.html

These actions will further assist the school district in mitigating any health risks to our students, staff, and families. We encourage parents and students to continue following the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention promoted safeguards, such as: 

  • Staying home when you are sick; 
  • Washing hands often with soap for at least 20 seconds; 
  • Covering coughs and sneezes and properly disposing of tissues; 
  • Limiting close contact with people who are sick and not sharing food, drinks, and utensils; 
  • Practicing social distancing; 
  • Wearing a mask and students having an extra mask in their backpack as possible;
  • Continuing to monitor your health for symptoms. 

As always, we appreciate our community’s support and cooperation. You can assist us by remaining vigilant but sensible in your approach to dealing with this health concern. Should you have any questions about this situation, please feel free to contact your building administrators.

South Orange & Maplewood School District

Important SOMSD Update: New School Reopening Date for All Students, Monday, September 13

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September 6, 2021

Dear SOMSD Community,

As we all recover from the impact of Tropical Storm Ida, we sincerely hope this message finds you and your family safe.  As a school district, we suffered significant losses,  and from the evening of the storm throughout the long weekend, our staff has been assessing the damage.   

The purpose of this communication is to share the District's status with you. We suffered damages to our facilities and our transportation vehicles.  Our Facilities Team has worked tirelessly throughout the weekend and done a terrific job of remediating the water damage to our facilities. However, the most pressing concerns for our reopening center around our school buses and transportation vans. We have been working closely with our insurance adjuster and the mechanics that we have an ongoing relationship with to assess the situation. At this time, we have received updates that have made us somewhat optimistic that our transportation fleet will be operational sooner than our original estimates. 

Another significant concern for us is the valuable school and classroom preparation time lost by our educators. We want our Fall Reopening to be a positive experience for all after the challenges presented by the last 18 months. To that end, we will be delaying our first day of school. The new date for all students is tentatively Monday, September 13, 2021. 

All staff will report to their buildings on Thursday, September 9 & Friday, September 10 to finalize their preparation for the return of our students. This delay will allow us to have a clearer picture of the condition of our Transportation Fleet, as well as other ongoing remediation efforts. 

In closing, the school year calendar will be shifting, the first day of school will tentatively be Monday, September 13 for all grade levels Prek-12. Staff will be returning to the buildings on Thursday, September 9.  If this plan is required to change, we will immediately update the community.

South Orange & Maplewood School District

SOMSD Fall 2021 Return to School Guidebook

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We are pleased to share with you the fall 2021 Return to School Guidebook. This guidebook provides an overview of our plans for a safe return to in-person instruction, five days a week, for all students.

All schools will open at full capacity for in-person instruction with a teacher in every classroom, a visionary administrator leading every school, and support staff providing critical wraparound services and support for our students and communities. Schools will return to their pre-pandemic times, class schedules and extracurricular activities.

This guidebook provides more details on: Operations & Logistics; Health & Safety Procedures; Meals; Contingency Plans; What to Expect for Curriculum & Instruction, Technology and Special Education; Chromebook Usage & Distribution by grade levels, and more.  The guide also summarizes the District’s contingency plans should the County’s health conditions require operational and instructional adjustments.

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