@NipmucRegional

We are excited to have our students back this week as we resume the hybrid schedule. This is our first time with the students back since the New Year and we were excited to welcome them bright and early this morning.

As a reminder, our schedule for the week has been adjusted following the celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. You can find that schedule below. Please make sure your child dresses in layers and warm enough with the colder temperatures and the windows open. We are looking forward to a great second half of the year!

The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education has changed its guidelines for the amount of “live” instruction that needs to be provided in remote and hybrid schedules. As a result of their updated guidelines, we will need to increase “live” instruction by 2.1 hours per week. We will also be providing students with opportunities for daily, live check-ins with their teachers on asynchronous days. Our district is in the final stages of updating schedules at each school. We will share the updated schedule later this week.

The Massachusetts Department of Public Health is removing the requirement for flu vaccination for attendance in childcare/preschool, primary, secondary and postsecondary education. Preliminary data show that this has been a mild flu season to date, presumably as people have received their seasonal flu vaccine and have been adhering to mask-wearing and social distancing due to COVID-19. Given the intensive Commonwealth-wide efforts regarding COVID-19 vaccination, DPH wants to alleviate the burden to obtain flu vaccination and focus on continuing our COVID -19 vaccination efforts.

DPH continues to strongly recommend that everyone age six months and older receive their seasonal flu vaccine each year.

Dear Parents/Guardians,

Beginning January 19th, MURSD will be implementing the BinaxNOW COVID-19 Ag Card test for students and staff who develop COVID-19 symptoms during the school day. Students and staff are not required to participate in the BinaxNOW testing. This is a voluntary program, requiring consent from parents and staff, and conducted by school nurses across the district. Please note - this is not pooled testing that has been discussed recently by Commissioner Riley and Governor Baker.

The BinaxNOW COVID-19 Ag Card is an antigen test. Antigen tests are designed to detect proteins from the virus that causes COVID-19 in respiratory specimens, for example nasal swabs. These are anterior (front of the nose) nasal swabs that cause little to no discomfort. They are not the posterior nasal swabs you may have heard about and/or experienced. Please click here for more information about this test.

The BinaxNOW test:

• requires parents to pre-register and provide consent prior to testing. Additionally, parents will be contacted by the school nurse, prior to testing, to obtain verbal consent. Testing will cease for any student who declines to participate.

• will be offered to students who develop COVID-19 symptoms during the school day. Students who develop COVID-19 symptoms while at home should not report to school to access testing. If your child is ill with COVID-19 symptoms, please keep them home and contact your school nurse or PCP for further guidance.

• requires that all students who are tested during the school day be dismissed home, even if the result is negative. The school nurse will provide follow up guidance on when your child may return to school.

• allows MURSD to begin immediate contact tracing for a positive COVID-19 test.

Nipmuc parents who wish to register their child, please click here.

Please call (508-529-2143) or email lmcinnis@mursd.org should you have any questions about the BinaxNOW testing program in school.

Take care,

Leslie McInnis, BSN, RN

Nancy Robbins, LPN

Term 2 and Semester 1 of the school year will end next Friday, January 29. Students should check with their teachers about their work before the semester comes to an end. Final grades for first semester courses will be published to PowerSchool on February 8. Students will begin their courses for Semester 2 on Monday, February 1.

What has been traditionally termed as AP "summer" work is now available to students for their semester 2 courses. You can find the link here. This work can be completed at any time prior to the start of semester 2 on February 1, 2021.

Yearbooks are on sale! The Nipmuc yearbook is geared toward all students, not only seniors. All clubs, organizations, and athletic teams will have their own space in the yearbook, beyond traditional group photos. Yearbook staff members also work hard collecting candid photos of students in all grades. Our goal is to make the yearbook all-inclusive and to capture memories of all of the wonderful things that Nipmuc students do throughout the school year. If you have pictures from this school year that you’d like to contribute, please email them to nipmucyearbook@mursd.org.

Order a yearbook today! “Early Bird” pricing extended to January 31st!

Yearbooks cost $65 before January 31, 2021 and can be purchased here. Starting in February, the price will increase to $75, so be sure to order soon! Please note that all members of the class of 2021 who are up to date with their class dues will receive a yearbook in May and do not need to purchase one.

If you are interested in purchasing ad space for a business, you can do that by clicking here. Please go to “Yearbook Business Ads.”

With the beginning of the new year, we are excited to restart Nipmuc’s Lead Learner Workshops. Lead Learner Workshops are leadership opportunities that are available to any student and any teacher in the school. They provide opportunities to shape the future of teaching and learning at Nipmuc.

Our next Lead Learner Workshop - “The Mastery Transcript: Helping Our Students Tell Their Story of Learning” - will take place from 12pm - 1pm on Wednesday, January 27. The Mastery Transcript Consortium (MTC) is a network of schools that are using a digital transcript that “that opens up opportunity for each and every student - from all backgrounds, locations, and types of schools - to have their unique strengths, abilities, interests, and histories fostered, understood, and celebrated.” By creating a digital, clickable, and personal transcript that highlights what students can do with their learning rather than their grades, MTC has shifted the national conversation the criteria colleges and universities use to accept students.

Although at this point Nipmuc will not use the Mastery Transcript for college applications, we are excited to explore its use as a portfolio tool to showcase the unique stories of learning that each of our students has to tell.

Students will receive email reminders about the next Lead Learner Workshop. All are welcome!

Due to COVID protocols we unfortunately will not have any fans at games this winter. However, Nipmuc Athletics is proud to announce that we have partnered with the NFHS Network, and we've invested in new technology that will bring you every game from our gymnasium LIVE.

Join the NFHS Network for full access to:

• live and on-demand sports broadcasts

• All other sporting events from around the Nation

Friends and family members who can’t make the game will never miss a play again!

Click here to subscribe and follow the different Nipmuc Athletics.

Thank you for your continued support of Nipmuc athletics. We look forward to bringing you top notch broadcasts of our athletic events!

The Nipmuc Drama Guild is excited to return with its upcoming production of the play Everything Seems Like Maybe. In this play the audience will hear the voices of teenagers during the different months of the quarantine. Using monologue, each character describes the different world events that were happening around them as they remained in their homes, unable to visit friends and family and continue their usual activities. These poignant speeches seen together paint a picture of what our teenagers were going through as the pandemic raged around them in 2020.

If we are able to be in school, the Nipmuc Drama Guild will live-stream the play on February 12 at 7 pm. Information on how to view the performance will be coming soon. If we are remote learning at that time, there will be a virtual, pre-recorded presentation. Either way, you won’t want to miss this piece of theatre presented under strict protocols with an important message for everyone!

Do you need help with your expenses due to COVID-19?

The Town of Upton is collaborating with local community groups and churches to address the financial needs of residents of all ages impacted by COVID-19. The Neighbor to Neighbor (N2N) Program is confidentially administered by the Upton Elder and Social Services staff to provide resources and necessary funds to address a wide variety of needs for individuals and families living in Upton. We can also provide resources for wellness calls and grocery and prescription delivery. Please click here for more information on this program along with news from the Upton Center.