Under COVID Barrage, Melrose Schools 'Concerned About ... Current Guidance'

MELROSE, MA — Facing nearly 150 newly reported COVID-19 cases since Christmas, the top Melrose Public Schools official expressed concern with the state's new protocols regarding the virus.

Superintendent Julie Kukenberger said in a Monday night email to the school community she has been meeting with other school district leaders as they work to best approach the revised DESE/DPH protocols for responding to COVID-19 scenarios.

"Like many of you, we have many questions and are concerned about several shortcomings in the current guidance," Kukenberger wrote.

Middlesex League superintendents and lead nurses are scheduled to meet Tuesday to "share and test several ideas related to implementing the updated guidance." The discussion points will include the newly recommended shortened isolation period for those who have COVID-19, meal protocols, in-school contact tracing, what it means to be fully vaccinated and more.

Kukenberger said the district hopes to provide written guidance this week that answers questions many parents have been asking. She said in a recent podcast with Mayor Paul Brodeur many questions have been about lunch and recess.

"We need some time to do this work before providing the level of detail our students, staff, and families deserve," she said. "I appreciate your support and patience over the coming days."

Related: Melrose Schools Has A Plan Amid Unprecedented COVID-19 Spike

Melrose opted to have school Monday, a decision most other districts made but some delayed to Tuesday amid concerns of staffing shortages and health risks coming out of the holiday break.

The district immediately felt the crunch. A "sudden staff shortage" led to Melrose canceling its after-school Education Stations at the Hoover, Horace Mann, Roosevelt and Winthrop Monday, the district announced in a last-minute email to families.

The district's COIVD-19 dashboard shows 148 positive COVID-19 cases from Dec. 26-Jan. 2, a number possibly higher in reality due to at-home tests that may not be reported. More than 77 percent of those cases were students.

The overall number of reported cases since Sept. 1 is at 430.

The dashboard now features a way to organize cases by the date of the onset of symptoms or a positive test result.

Mike Carraggi can be reached at mike.carraggi@patch.com. Follow him on Twitter @PatchCarraggi and Instagram at Melrose Happening. Subscribe to Melrose Patch for free local news and alerts and like us on Facebook