Rutland Northeast SU

VEGGIE VAN GO MONDAY JANUARY 17 - 10 AM to 11 AM @ OVUHS: On Monday, January 17 from 10 AM to 11 AM the Vermont Foodbank will be at OVUHS to distribute free fruits and veggies to all who stop by. All families of school children and staff are welcome!! This free monthly produce distribution (3rd Monday of each month) event is open to all students, families, and staff affiliated with all Rutland Northeast Supervisory Union Schools: Barstow Memorial, Lothrop Elementary, Neshobe Elementary, Otter Creek Academy at Leicester, Sudbury and Whiting., & Otter Valley Middle and High School. There are no eligibility requirements and no reservations needed.

BOOSTER SHOT INFORMATION FOR AGES 12-15 YEAR OLDS: The state's registration system ( https://www.healthvermont.gov/covid-19/vaccine/getting-covid-19-vaccine) has appointments available for parents/caregivers to register their children aged 12-15 for a booster vaccination appointment. Per the CDC earlier this month, individuals are now eligible for a booster five months after completing their initial Pfizer vaccine series. ➤ See: Health Department FAQ - Am I eligible for a booster shot or an extra dose of the COVID-19 vaccine? https://www.healthvermont.gov/covid-19/faqs#boostershot

INTERESTED IN SERVING ON ONE OF OUR SCHOOL BOARDS? Go to the school board page on rnesu.org to learn what seats are open and to get a petition. Petitions are due to town clerks by Monday - January 24, 2022. ➤ OVUU meets for a board candidate orientation on Wednesday, January 12th at OVUHS library at 5 PM followed by a board meeting to approve the budget at 6 PM. Meetings are in person and online ➤ BUU Board meets Wednesday, January 12th at 5 PM for a board candidate orientation at the Chittenden Library in Barstow School followed by a board meeting at 6 PM. Meetings are in person and online

Dear parents and guardians Tomorrow's temperature at morning pick up are anticipated to be in the double digit negative numbers. Windchill has the potential of being 26 below 0.  We plan to stay open assuming our buses will start. We will take steps to ensure they start. Please dress your child accordingly for the trip to school. Boots, gloves, coats are a must. Do not allow your child to walk to a bus stop. If you are unable to drive your child to the bus and wait for it to arrive, or to the school directly, then please consider keeping them at home. This is quite dangerous weather. Thank you. Be safe.

WHAT ABOUT QUARANTINING? Under the revised VDH guidance, quarantines for close contacts are now shorter. ➤ 5 days is now recommended and you can leave quarantine IF you have no symptoms or your symptoms are improving, including no fever for at least 24 hours unmedicated and you wear a mask for another 5 days. It is also recommended that you test again no earlier than day 4. This is a recommendation and not a requirement. ➤ Quarantine for positive cases has also been updated and can be found at this link. https://tinyurl.com/2p9n78t2

IS MY CHILD CONSIDERED FULLY VACCINATE UNDER UPDATED VDH GUIDANCE? To be considered fully vaccinated you must be boosted OR vaccinated with two shots of Pfizer or Moderna within 6 months or one shot of Johnson & Johnson within 2 months. ➤ Our students are only eligible for Pfizer. Boosters were only recently available to kids 16 and above; 12-15 year olds were approved for boosters as of this week. ➤ Thus, the majority of our students will need to quarantine if considered a close contact, unless their vaccination is within 6 months or they have the booster.

UPDATED COVID GUIDANCE FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH: On Dec 29, CDC updated its guidance particularly around the definition of fully vaccinated and quarantine guidelines. Within a day or so, VT updated their guidance. We follow the VT Department of Health guidance in the RNESU schools. Click on the links below to learn what you now need to do if positive or a close contact: VDH close contact page Jan 2022: https://www.healthvermont.gov/covid-19/symptoms-sickness/what-do-if-you-are-close-contact VDH Positive COVID page: https://www.healthvermont.gov/sites/default/files/documents/pdf/COVID-19_What-to-do-if-you-are-diagnosed-with-COVID-19_final.pdf

The burning odor at OVUHS was discovered to be due to an air exchange unit which had an electric burnout and seized up. Luckily it shut down before there was an actual fire. A new motor was ordered and should be installed by the end of tomorrow. OVUHS remains closed tomorrow, Friday, Jan 7 2022 and students will participate in distance learning. Thank you for your patience.

As of today, the state's registration system has appointments available for parents/caregivers to register their children aged 12-15 for a booster vaccination appointment. Per the CDC earlier this month, individuals are now eligible for a booster five months after completing their initial Pfizer vaccine series.

#RNESUVT would like to welcome Michael Rupple as the new principal of OVUHS starting in July, 2022. Welcome, Michael! #ovvtpride @JimAvery

The RNESU Superintendent Search Committee is looking for your input on the skills and dispositions you are hoping the new superintendent will possess. Please participate by attending a virtual input session: Zoom on Thursday, January 6 at 6:00 PM. Zoom link and details to participate can be found on the calendar at https://www.rnesu.org/events If you are unable to attend, but have input you would like to share, please use the Thought Exchange or submit your input through Le'ts Talk at https://www.rnesu.org/page/superintendent-search.

Updated #RNESUVT COVID response guidance posted at rnesu.org and sent to all parents and staff on Jan. 1, 2022. Whishing each of you a healthy and joyous 2022!

Free Back to School Antigen Tests Available Dec 30 and 31 for all Vermont School Children Registration and more information is available at https://tinyurl.com/yz7txb2w

A holiday message from Secretary Dan French and Teacher of the Year Sue Rosato https://education.vermont.gov/sites/aoe/files/documents/edu-letter-rosato-french-holiday-message.pdf

Governor Scott Announces Holiday Vaccination and Testing Clinics https://governor.vermont.gov/press-release/governor-scott-announces-holiday-vaccination-and-testing-clinics

Students in Otter Valley's Broadcasting club wondered what their classmates and teachers might be doing over the holiday break. Take 1-minute to hear what some of them had to say, including principal Avery's plans, here: https://anchor.fm/otter-valley/episodes/An-Otterly-Holiday-e1c2bod https://open.spotify.com/show/75kCW1gMXHx8MxGUo0ngaK

#RNESUVT is seeking input for the superintendent search committee!. Please respond to this Thought Exchange and let the committee know your thoughts! https://tejoin.com/scroll/995750830

Yesterday we were notified by the Agency of Education of non-credible social media-based school threats that alluded to potential school violence taking place on Dec. 17, 2021. At this time there are no credible threats in Vermont. These posts have made their way into Vermont and other states in our region are reporting similar social media activity. Furthermore, these posts follow a similar pattern that we have seen in other non-credible social media based threats. The Vermont Intelligence Center and our state’s law enforcement partners are aware of these non-credible threats and are continuing to monitor the situations and will provide updates to school leadership as needed. If you believe your child is active on social media and you feel it’s appropriate, please have a conversation with them to make them aware of this situation. As always, if you have any school safety concerns, we encourage you to contact your local law enforcement agency to make them aware of this information. We take these types of situations very seriously and collaborate closely with all of our school safety stakeholders to provide an open, safe and welcoming environment. The safety of your children and our staff is our number one priority. We need to work together for school safety. If you or your child sees or hears anything that you are concerned about, please contact the police and/or us or use the tipline below, which is available 24 hours a day and monitored at the state intelligence level. There are three ways to report a tip on this tipline: Call (844) 723-3488 and speak to a call-taker Submit the tip at www.SAFE4VT.org via a form Text to 274637, type in keyword SAFE4VT and then your tip School safety is all of our jobs. Thank you for partnering to keep our students and staff safe. Jeanne Collins Superintendent of RNESU Schools

REMINDERS : December & February Vacation Dates Confirmed! Here is the link to the full district calendar as released last year. https://tinyurl.com/vy56p2wk. ➤ Dec break begins on Thursday, December 23rd ➤ The correct February vacation is the week of February 21st Magnetic calendars distributed to staff at the start of the school year indicated Feb 14. That was an error. We apologize this was not caught earlier!

School Board Meetings and Board Openings: Board meetings returned to in-person meetings with a zoom option for those who wish to attend virtually. Meeting information can be found on the district calendar. ➤ Current School Board meetings are largely focused on developing the budget for next school year. Attend or watch on Peg TV! ➤ RNESU Board meets this Wednesday, December 15th, 5 pm at OCA/ Leicester Central School and online ➤ BUU Board meets Dec 20, 6 pm at Barstow School and online Interested in serving on a school board? Go to the school board page on rnesu.org to learn what seats are open and to get a petition.