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Date: 2/8/2022
SOUTH HADLEY – The South Hadley School Committee met to discuss a variety of agenda items including COVID-19 test distribution and the fiscal year 2023 (FY23) budget at its Feb. 3 meeting.
To begin, Superintendent Jahmal Mosley reflected on a recent and successful Professional Development Day where staff learned more about the social and emotional health of students. He said that this is something staff wanted to look at this year given the COVID-19 pandemic and its effects on students’ mental health.
“It’s never something that we conclude. It’s always an ongoing conversation about how we, as a community, can better understand our kids’ social emotional needs and growth particularly when coming back from a pandemic and being in school,” said Mosley.
He then gave an update on COVID-19 test distribution to students and staff. He said that South Hadley Public Schools have distributed about 600 free, rapid in-home tests so far.
“As soon as we get these tests for our families and staff, we get them right out. We understand that we always want to keep people safe, but we also want to make sure that they have the proper resources to test themselves,” said Mosley.
The district also recently hosted a public forum for the community to explain new COVID-19 protocols, procedures and testing. He said that all information pertaining to COVID-19 is available on the South Hadley Public Schools website and that the public forum was recorded for people to watch.
“We are only following what DESE (Department of Elementary and Secondary Education)gives us, so the good news is that they gave us tests for our staff and for our students. The challenging piece to this is just staying on top of it and trying to get out as much information to everyone as we can,” he said.
The meeting also had a preliminary conversation on the budget for FY23. Mosley said that internal budget discussions according to building needs, student and staff needs and contracts have already begun.
“Those conversations have already started and continue to take place,” said Mosley.
The School Committee looked at what the South Hadley Public Schools budget has been over the past 10 years and how many positions have been cut.
According to Mosley, 80½ positions have been cut over the last 10 years. Going forward, he said that the district is looking at increasing human capital and restoring some of these positions.
He is hopeful that the positions of an assistant principal and two vocational teachers at the high school will be restored in FY23, along with an assistant principal, guidance counselor, three seventh grade teachers and three sixth grade teachers at the middle school. At Mosier Elementary School, the position of assistant principal will hopefully be restored.
Mosley is also proposing creating a partnership with Mount Holyoke College to get additions support and resources. He said this could provide opportunities for teacher trainings, community support and more.
Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) Funds have also provided a great deal of support within the budget since COVID-19 began. Mosley said that these funds have helped with hiring new staff and tutors, developing instructional software, providing new technology, aiding in professional development and transportation services.
Given that the conversation was preliminary, Mosley said that they will continue to look at the budget and focus on how they can keep human capital within the schools.
“We’re all in this together. Everybody wants to keep their money and resources in South Hadley and this is what this budget does with support,” he said. “Our kids are in need of more support than ever before.”