The BRICK Times
Vol. 20 - No. 20
In This Week’s Edition
MICROMEDIA PUBLICATIONS
JERSEYSHOREONLINE.COM
COVID-19 Shakes Up Trick Or Treating Rules
District Reviews Start Of Schools' ‘New Normal’
BREAKING NEWS @
jerseyshoreonline.com
Dr. Izzy’s Sound News Page 14
Dear Pharmacist Page 15
Inside The Law Page 17
Dear Joel Page 22
─Photo by Judy Smestad-Nunn This highly decorated home belongs to the Mendes family on Alden Street. By Judy Smestad-Nunn BR I C K - Tow n sh ip re side nt s who w ish to pa r t icipate in Trick or Treat this year should keep their porch lights on, even during daylight hours, said Mayor John G.
Ducey during the most recent Township Council meeting. Homeowners might not want their kids to Trick or Treat, or they m ig ht not b e comfortable with having strangers coming up
to their door during giving out candy or the public health cri- wanting to do that,” sis, even though their Ducey said. house might be decoHalloween falls on rated, he said. a Saturday this year, “So it might be deco- so it’s likely Trick or rated still for Hallow- Treaters will get an een, but they might early start. not n e c e s s a r i ly b e (Halloween - See Page 4)
Drop Boxes Are Ready For Your Ballot
By Bob Vosseller TOMS RIVER – There are 17 drop boxes available in Ocean County to bring your completed ballot to. Officials of the state recently released a complete list of locations of where secure drop boxes are for use during this year’s mail-in general election on November 3.
The 17 drop boxes are spread out throughout the county and several are already available for depositing completed ballots, which are collected by the Ocean County Board of Elections on a daily basis. Cameras have been installed to monitor the boxes on 24 hour/seven day a week basis. Once
you return your ballot, a voter will have the ability to track their ballot online through the state Division of Elections. Considering the ongoing COVID -19 pandemic, Governor Phil Mur phy signed P.L. 2020, c. 72 which requires County Clerks to send all active registered voters a vote by
mail ballot for the November 3, 2020 General Election. Ocean County Clerk Scott Colabella said mail-in ballots are being sent to active registered voters. Those who have not yet registered to vote have until October 13 to do so and can register in person at the Ocean
October 3, 2020
County Clerk’s office located at the Ocean County Courthouse at 118 Washington St. According to the state Division of Elections drop boxes are already available at the following locations and towns. Barnegat: Ocean County Library branch, 112 Burr St., Barnegat (Ballot - See Page 11)
By Judy Smestad-Nunn BRICK - The new school year, which began on September 8, brings “hope and promise, as well as challenges and concerns,” said superintendent of schools Dr. Thomas Farrell during the first in-person Board of Education meeting held in seven months. Attendance was limited to a total of 25 people for the September 24 meeting, which meant that only 10 members of the public could attend since there are 15 board members and school officials. “Obviously this is not a normal school year opening, and we will have to adapt to our now-normal,” Farrell said. “It literally took months of planning to craft a new instructional model that met state and (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) guidelines.” Brick is providing a flexible model of both in-person and virtual instruction, making it easier to “shift back seamlessly into our buildings, or go all-remote, if need be,” he said. Dr. Farrell said he believes that not opening the schools would have dire repercussions, as stated by the NJ Department of Education. “In-person instruction provides students with academic, social, emotional and mental health supports that cannot be provided with the same level of efficacy in a remote setting,” he read. While remote learning is not a substitute for in-person delivery of instruction, the model being used by the district enables the remote learners to become an active part of the learning community, he said. “We know that this isn’t easy or comfortable for anyone,” Dr. Farrell said. “Everyone longs for a return to normalcy.” The district devoted the first two weeks of school to safety protocols and procedures, cultivating relationships, establishing routines and the distribution of materials, including over 7,000 devices, he said. Teachers phased in the virtual live lessons in order to build “screen endurance” for the youngest students. Virtual learning has been customized, based upon the developmental needs of the (School - See Page 11)
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