July 31, 2020
Dear Noble Families,
Earlier today, Governor Mills released updated guidance to assist school communities in making their decisions about how to resume instruction this fall in the face of COVID-19. This guidance includes a color coded Health Advisory System that classifies counties’ relative risk as well as updated requirements for schools to safely reopen.
The Health Advisory System categorizations are defined as follows:
RED: Categorization as “red” suggests that the county has a high risk of COVID-19 spread and that in-person instruction is not advisable.
YELLOW: Categorization as “yellow” suggests that the county has an elevated risk of COVID-19 spread and that schools may consider hybrid instructional models as a way to reduce the number of people in schools and classrooms at any one time.
GREEN: Categorization as “green” suggests that the county has a relatively low risk of COVID-19 spread and that schools may consider in-person instruction, as long as they are able to implement the required health and safety measures. Schools in a “green” county may need to use hybrid instruction models if there is insufficient capacity or other factors (facilities, staffing, geography/transportation, etc.) that may impact full implementation of the health and safety requirements.
Governor Mills has categorized York County as Green. As stated above, schools in a “Green” county may need to use a hybrid model (a combination of in-person and remote) if there is insufficient capacity or other factors listed above.
Within the next few days you will be receiving detailed information regarding the start of school in MSAD #60. Our Fall School Task Force and Administrative Team have been working since May with constantly changing information to create safe and viable plans. The models take into account all the Health and Safety Requirements and the most updated information from the State of Maine, Maine Department of Education, Health and Human Services, and The Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
We very much understand the desire and necessity for families to have concrete information from MSAD #60 as soon as possible. It is our goal as a school administrative unit to safely bring as many students as possible back to school. I thank you for your patience during this unpresented time as we continue to respond to the most up-to-date information.
Audra Beauvais
Superintendent of Schools