Hanover High School Full-Return Update 3/2/21
This week marks our last scheduled cohort week. We’ve done an exceptional job with this model, and we’ll do an excellent job with restructuring beginning next week. I’m looking forward to having us all back together again!
It’s surreal to know that exactly one-year-ago today, Governor Baker gave his first COVID-19 address to the State. As surreal – last year – on Friday, March 13, 2020 (Friday the 13th) – we went into full-remote learning. This year, on Monday, March 8, 2021 – we return to full in-person learning. Here we go!
As you know, much attention this week is on (and has been on, and will be on) a safe and healthy return to full in-person learning beginning on March 8th. Although our current plans in preparation for this date are excellent, they remain on-going, and we’ll continue to give all the components of a safe return careful consideration and close attention.
Here are some preliminary, yet important points to know prior to next Monday, March 8th:
School Arrival
Beginning Monday morning, we’ll need to fully utilize both the café and the gymnasium prior to 1st period, and we’ll need to do so safely and thoughtfully. To that end, the school will open to students at 7:20 am; however, it’ll be accessible from 7:20 am – 7:35 am only through the gymnasium doors via the courtyard side of the building (Note: At no time is drop-off or pick-up permitted from the back of the building). At 7:35 am, access will be permitted through the front doors of the high school. This separation in time and space will keep students further apart in the mornings, and it will allow for more efficient and effective supervision.
Morning Building Access
- 7:20 am – 7:35 am: Open gymnasium doors via the courtyard side of the building
- 7:35 am – 7:55 am: Open main front doors of the building
Parking
Our seniors were recently assigned student parking. They are the only students with this privilege, so all other student drivers will need to use the single back row of the main student lot (148-167), available spots along the softball/baseball fields (196-221), and/or open spaces in the maintenance lot. No student is allowed to park in the faculty lot behind the school – and, again – no drop-offs or pick-ups are permitted in this area either. Make no mistake, parking will be limited; so, you are encouraged to carpool (with masks), arrive early, and/or befriend a senior (If at any point safety becomes compromised, tickets will be assigned to illegally parked vehicles).
Classrooms
In every room, we’ve arranged classroom seating at a minimum distance of 4 feet from seat-edge-to-seat-edge, as opposed to center-to-center (No student seating in the building is less than this distance). The pathways in and out of the classrooms meet, or most often exceed this distancing; furthermore, the front instructional areas of our classrooms are arranged at a minimum distance of 8 feet to allow for ample, controlled teacher and student movement as necessary. Among many things, these distances will help to safely manage students exiting classrooms. (Please note that students will be exiting individual classrooms following controlled, teacher-directed intervals to avoid bottlenecking at the classroom doors and to decrease congestion in the hallways during passing times).
Hallway Movement
As students enter the hallways, each hallway remains carefully marked with directional arrows which not only help to separate students but also help to guide students to move in a singular, shared direction. Stairwells have been individually designated as either “up” or “down” and must be used accordingly. We’ll need to work together in following these pathways, and we’ll need to be diligent in our adherence to these safety measures. Please refer to the attached diagram for building traffic-flow design.
Masks
Safety masks must be worn at all times with the exceptions of outside mask breaks, and while safely distanced and seated at lunch. Upon returning from a mask break, leaving your seat at lunch, or at any moment other than the aforementioned times – masks must be worn without exception.
Lunches
For obvious health and safety reasons, lunches require a minimum 6-foot distancing at all times. We serve only 3 separate lunches; however, we’re utilizing a square footage nearly 3 times the usual size for these lunches incorporating the café, gym space, courtyard space, and breakout areas as necessary.
Mask Breaks
Mask breaks will be staggered among classrooms, and they will be pre-planned to control movement during these times.
Seating Charts
Students will be assigned seats, as seating charts will be anticipatorily important. Since we’ve combined cohorts and associated rosters in Aspen, these will be maintained through this program and will be made available to our nursing staff in the event contact-tracing becomes necessary.
Bathrooms
As of now, only 1 bathroom is open daily on the 2nd and 3rd floors, while all but 1 restroom remains open on the 1st floor. We’ll adjust as necessary.
Dismissal
We’ll be releasing seniors a few moments prior to the last bell in order to stagger dismissal and to control congestion in the hallways and the parking lots. With parental permission, seniors with 1st period and/or 7th period directed studies will be permitted to arrive by 8:45 am and allowed to dismiss at 1:40 pm respectively. Details have been communicated to seniors; however, instead of requiring an old-fashioned permission slip to the main office, please take a quick moment to indicate your level of consent regarding this privilege using the linked form: https://forms.gle/A3zzzudoLsiP7zPG6
Welcome back, and much more to follow. Be warm. Be safe.
Matthew Paquette
Principal
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 hhs_building_traffic_flow_map.pdf | 453.24 KB |