Use this search box to find articles that have run in our newspapers over the last several years.
Date: 3/9/2022
WEST SPRINGFIELD – Schools began the pivot to remote learning immediately after the COVID-19 state of emergency was declared.
By coincidence, the West Springfield School Department had already declared March 13, 2020, a staff training day. When it became clear that Gov. Charlie Baker was going to declare a state of emergency, School Superintendent Tim Connor “quickly transitioned” this to a day of developing online programming for remote learning. West Springfield had already purchased Chromebook computers for all its students, which made the transition easier.
“At the time, we were [already] a one-to-one ratio district,” said Connor.
Most West Springfield classes remained fully remote for nearly a year. Apart from a handful of days in November 2020 for the youngest students, kids didn’t return to in-person learning until a hybrid system was phased in, starting in February 2021.
Connor said the decision for remote learning came from a spike in COVID-19 cases throughout the region. Rather than using a hybrid model and alternating kids’ time spent in and out of the classroom, Connor said this was the “better choice for kids to remain safe.”
The hybrid model was challenging, he said.
“We had A and B days,” said Connor. “Kids could come in for three days one week, two days the next,” while the rest of the class attended via Zoom from home.
That system lasted just a few weeks, as the state mandated full-week in-person learning starting in March for lower grades, April for high schoolers.
Enrollment
For the 2019-20 school year, West Springfield public schools had a total enrollment of 4,091. In 2020-21, enrollment dropped to 3,913. Currently, enrollment is 3,851.
After seeing a decrease from 2020 to 2021, Connor said they “hoped to bounce back this year,” but are down 40 students from kindergarten.
Connor hopes that students who went off to private school will come back or enroll their kids for first grade.
The pandemic seems not to have affected graduation rates for seniors at West Springfield High School. In 2019, before the pandemic, the graduation rate was 93.7 percent; in 2020, 94.8 percent; and in 2021, 94.1 percent.
Cases in school
Of all the positive COVID-19 cases they’ve seen in schools over the past two years, Connor said the largest absentee rate from staff and students was during the latest omicron surge.
Connor, along with Assistant Superintendent Vito Peronne and their central office team, went in to teach classes during this time, because so many teachers had to call out sick. Once the surge ended, Connor said staffing bounced back.
“There are still cases, people are quarantining,” he noted, although it’s not nearly as significant as the recent surge.
Since West Springfield decided to opt in to weekly at-home testing in February, Connor said it’s been “going well.”
“Staff had about 95 percent interest,” with “quite a few” students, as well, said Connor. “Families are pulling away from pool testing and doing this instead.”
In order to partake in the at-home weekly testing option, staff and students must opt in. Every Friday, Connor sends an email to parents inviting them to join in on the next round of testing.
With the at-home testing, Connor said they have seen positive cases. If a student tests positive, a parent must report it to the school. The same goes for staff.
The schools also offer symptomatic testing.
Recently, two West Springfield schools offered vaccine clinics to students, with parents’ permission, during the school day. Connor said they are working to offer another clinic, although the school location and details are uncertain as of press time.
ESSER funds
Federal Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief grants — ESSER — were used for “a lot of salaries and technology,” Connor said. “The bulk of the money went towards interventionists — reading, math specialists.”
The funds were also used to hire additional adjustment counselors and nursing staff. Isolation room monitors were hired, as the market has made it too difficult to find substitutes.
Aside from staffing, Connor said the schools spent “a big chunk” of money to purchase large tents that allowed students to eat lunch outside. Additionally, the ESSER funds were used on air purifiers, upgrades to ventilation systems at a few schools and personal protective equipment.
Across the state, Connor said schools are seeing a jump in special education costs. “Socio-emotional learning is real. A lot of students are dysregulated,” with the youngest students being hit the hardest based on their development levels.
While special education is a concern every year, Connor said there is a notable increase this year.
Connor described the need to continue making up for the emotional and educational setbacks of the pandemic, even after grant funds run out, as a “fiscal cliff.”
Masking
Since the mask mandate in schools ended on Feb. 28 and is now optional, Connor said about half of staff and students are still wearing masks.
“The principals are reporting to us that 30 to 50 percent are still wearing masks,” he stated.
Connor views this an option that works for both sides.
Regardless of masking, he said, “COVID is not gone.”
A vote on masking on buses was scheduled for the School Committee meeting on March 8, after The Reminder’s deadline.
Looking back on the past two years, Connor said, “I hope we keep heading in the same direction, avoid any surges and keep the kids in school.”