Dear Ramsey and Saddle River Communities:
Thank you to everyone for helping to make our Phase 2 Instructional Plan a smashing success. While not perfect, this new schedule is addressing many of our concerns. Our ability to analyze, reflect, and pivot is another example of what makes our District a special one. A huge thank you to the Ramsey staff for making this shift.
And we’re not done shifting! As we say good riddance to 2020, one more wrinkle is in the wind (and I am not talking about the worldwide Google shutdown earlier this week, though I thought the universe was sending me yet another diabolical message). I am referring to the impending Nor’easter! Forecasts call for as much as a foot of snow — maybe more — over the next 24 hours. Yet, another unpopular decision has to be made! Boy, I love making these!
Due to this forecast, we are closing down the district Thursday for an authentic, 100% snow day. Closed for students, closed for all-remote, closed for staff. It would be easy to shift to all-remote, but this year has been hard. Let’s put the stress of 2020 on hold for one day! All hands should be on deck for snow shoveling, snowman making, and hot cocoa drinking! Feel free to send any snowmen, snow fort, or decadent hot chocolate pictures my way!
Actually, it felt pretty good to make that decision. This might be our only chance at 2019-style normalcy. We will take future weather days on a case-by-case basis. If and when it makes sense, and with plenty of time for parents and staff to plan accordingly, we may call for an all-remote day. But for Thursday, let us all enjoy the magic of winter.
Starting on Friday, we will move to all-remote instruction for the remaining four days before Winter Recess begins. This decision was made because of the increasing numbers of positive COVID cases in our region, the chain-reaction quarantines they cause, and the number of people sidelined by COVID-like symptoms even without test results. (Thank you all for doing that, by the way. Exercising that kind of caution is one way to help stop the spread.) Some surrounding districts have completely shut down, challenging some Ramsey staff members to find child care and challenging us to adequately staff our buildings. For all of those reasons, we feel this is the best course of action.
We encourage you to continue monitoring your children for signs of illness every day. The NJDOH guidelines now recommend that if someone in the household is being tested for COVID-19 due to illness, all household members should also stay home until the symptomatic person receives a negative test result.
Over Winter Recess, we will continue to monitor the situation and keep in touch with our local health officials. It is crucial to email your school nurse and principal with any COVID-positive cases or exposure, even over the break. While in-person instruction is set to resume on January 4, we may need to change course based on information gleaned over the holiday break. Stay tuned! Stay healthy! Stay in touch if needed!
Sincerely,
Matthew J. Murphy, Ed. D.
Superintendent of Schools
