WALPOLE HIGH SCHOOL
December 2021
VOLUME XXv, ISSUE ii
NON PROFIT ORG. U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT NO.8
WALPOLE, MA 02081
WHS faces increasing number of COVID-19 cases
Despite rising vaccination numbers, outbreaks continue to affect schools By Sophia Brownsword News Editor
As the school year goes on, students are unable to forget about the ongoing pandemic. The first COVID-19 case of the school year hit Walpole High in October, and up until the week of Nov. 14, there had been an average of around 5 positive cases per week. But the week of Nov. 14-20 there was an outbreak, totaling 23 cases. Although Walpole High has hit an 80% vaccination rate, the public school mask mandate for Massachusetts has been set in place until at least early 2022 for ages 5 and up. Nurses at Walpole High believe that COVID-19 cases are only going to get worse this winter. “With everyone getting together for the holidays, regardless of vaccination status, we are still seeing more whole entire families come back positive,” Nurse Rachel Jackson said. Keeping COVID-19 out of schools is necessary for students to continue on with learning as nor-
mal as possible. One of the major components that has been able to keep kids in school this year has been Walpole High’s Test and Stay program. This program allows students who have been close contacted to stay in class instead of quarantine for the mandatory 14 days. Students who have been close contacted will get tested for COVID-19 each day in the nurses office, which takes at most 20 minutes. Test results come back within 16 minutes, and positive cases are caught immediately. Students get tested once a day for seven days in order to rule out any chance of developing COVID-19 after being contact traced. Another way proven to keep students in school in-person is getting vaccinated. If a student becomes a close contact to someone in their class, whom they sit three feet apart from, that student is opted out from the quarantine and the Test and Stay if they are fully vaccinated. Walpole has held multiple vaccination clinics for all different ages, most recently for ages 5-11 as the vaccine was most recently approved
Photo/ Walpole Nurses Photo/ Walpole Nurses
Walpole
police
GOFI
dog
makes
for this age group. Vaccine booster clinics are beginning to be held for those above 18 in Walpole as well. “If you’re sick, don’t come to school. And even if your test comes back negative, don’t return to school if you’re still sick,” Jackson said. “What we’re seeing now is people are coming back to school after negative tests, but they’re just not getting better, and then four days later, their tests are coming back positive.” The most promising way to keep COVID-19 out of schools has been to keep students and faculty
an
appearance
at
vaccine
clinic.
wearing masks, as well as attempt to continue raising vaccination rates. Students at WHS are still wearing their masks throughout the school day and social distancing during their classes, as well as during lunch. All indoor winter sports participants are required to wear masks during games and practices. While the district has done what it can to protect students and faculty, the presence of COVID-19 in public schools has not completely gone away, as things around the world slowly attempt to return to normalcy.
Field trips return to Walpole High school clubs
Clubs resume field trips for students, after postponing due to COVID-19 By Farrell Raeke Social Media and Business Manager After having almost two school years of cancelled events and changed schedules, students are once again starting to feel a sense of normalcy this school year. Field trips are making a return for many Walpole High School clubs, which gives members a shared opportunity to learn something new or to just have a social experience outside of school. Due to the COVID-19 restrictions during the last school
year, it was difficult to plan field trips to places that will allow visitors, so the French Club was cancelled for the 2020-2021 school year. French club advisor Kathleen Frattasio is hoping that club field trips will give students the opportunity to try certain things that they have been learning about in class. “Having field trips again this year brings people to join and it opens it up to more students,” Frattasio said. “[Field trips] are a nice change of pace and gets students
Photo/ Twitter
PM Club enjoys their first field trip of the year to the Isabella Stewart Gardner museum.
out of their comfort zone, so they aren’t just sitting in the classroom, and it enriches the culture that they are learning about.” The Latin Club, similar to the French Club, put the club on hold due to COVID-19 and suspended meetings and activities until the students and staff were comfortable gathering together, since most of their trips include traveling into other towns and cities. Advisor Laura Kay is excited for things to return back to normal and to be able to connect with her students on a personal level as well as learn more about them outside of the classroom. “I hope it brings a positive experience to the students and can broaden their experiences and find cultural things they can relate to things they learn in class,” said Kay. Due to the ongoing mask mandate in Boston and the PM Club had all of their field trips in the city, the club was postponed
last school year until the students and administrator were comfortable bringing a larger group into the city. With hope that students will expand their interests in exploring different places, the PM Club field trips will resume this year with trips to museums and other interesting parts of the city of Boston. “I think taking field trips allows students to have a wider view of the world,’’ club administrator Kathryn Bacon said. “I hope that [the students] gain an appreciation for different aspects of various cultures that they have access to simply by residing so close to a major U.S. city.” Each of these clubs use field trips as a way for students to explore the subject outside of school. As field trips resume, teachers hold high hopes that more students will express interest in joining these clubs and having an out of school experience with teachers and other peers that may not be available in the classroom.