Good Morning,
We have completed another snowy week of school that included a distance learning day and a couple of 2-hour delayed schedule days on top of an already short week. It can be confusing amongst all of the closures, delays and distance learning days to support your children at home so I would like to share some information that will help you navigate through everything.
First, the Blue/Green Calendar will remain intact regardless of whether school is closed or held as a distance learning day. This is your guide for all color days from now through June. If there is a need to add days to the calendar due to school closures, the district Interactive Calendar will be updated to reflect the additional days added to the end of the year.
Next, Rippowam has 3 bell schedules that are used depending on whether it is a regular school day, 2-hour delayed opening or early release day. Please see below for each of these bell schedules:
| Rippowam Middle School 2020-2021 Bell Schedules |
| Period |
Regular |
2-Hour Delay |
Early Release |
|
| 1 |
7:25-8:15 |
9:25-9:58 |
7:25-7:58 |
|
|
| 3 |
8:18-9:08 |
10:01-10:34 |
8:01-8:34 |
|
|
| 4 |
9:11-10:01 |
10:37-11:10 |
8:37-9:10 |
|
|
| 5 |
10:04-10:54 |
11:13-11:46 |
9:13-9:46 |
|
|
| 2 |
10:57-12:12 |
11:49-12:55 |
9:49-10:22 |
|
|
| 6 |
12:15-1:05 |
12:58-1:31 |
10:25-10:58 |
|
|
| 7 |
1:08-1:58 |
1:34-1:58 |
11:01-11:34 |
|
|
The order of the periods is always 1, 3, 4, 5, 2, 6, 7 regardless of the bell schedule. Morning Announcements can be viewed live at 7:25 on a Regular Day and an Early Release day and they are streamed live on a 2-Hour Delay at 9:25. If you prefer to read the morning announcements on your own time, they can be viewed by clicking here.
For other important notes from this week, please read below:
Vaccination Update
We were excited to hear the Governor’s announcement this week that individuals who are 65 and older, including our school staff in this category, are now eligible to schedule a vaccine appointment. This means that nearly 300 SPS employees are now eligible to receive their first COVID-19 vaccine dose. We will keep you updated as to when the next group of our employees become eligible. For the most up-to-date vaccination information, go to the Connecticut State COVID-19 page.
COVID-19 Information
For the most up-to-date information related to Stamford’s COVID-19 situation, please tune in to Mayor Martin’s weekly Tuesday Community Meetings where he is joined by health professionals and other State and community leaders who provide updates on data, testing sites, vaccinations, and other important health and safety information. Please be reminded that Stamford continues to increase the amount of testing locations in the Stamford community. For an updated list of COVID-19 testing sites, please visit the City of Stamford website here.
Meals and More Benefits
While we remain fortunate to be able to offer free meals to all students, it is important to know that completing the Meal application may provide your student with access to additional benefits, such as reduced college application fees and discounted sports or summer camp programs. Please review our Meals and More Flyer for details.
Pop-Up Webinars Available
Last week, in honor of National School Counseling Week, SPS hosted a series of Parent and Student Pop-Up Webinars. Please check out the recordings for all topics presented on our Parent University Page. The most relevant webinar for middle school families is titled Strategies for Supporting Our Students in the Hybrid/Distance Teaching and Learning Model.
February Break
Just a quick reminder that February break started yesterday (Friday). Students will return to learning on Wednesday (which will be a Green Day), while staff will return on Tuesday for professional development (PD). At Ripp, the theme of our PD will be on increasing student engagement.
COVID Case Reporting
Please be advised that I will continue to keep both staff and families updated by reporting the number of positive cases each week within my end of the week emails. Additionally, we will continue contact tracing immediately upon notification of a positive case and the health and safety of all Rippowam community members will remain at the forefront of all that we do.
COVID Cases for the Week of February 8th - February 12th
| New Positive Cases |
# of Rippowam Community Members Quarantined |
| 2 |
0 |
Best regards,
Matthew Laskowski
Principal
Rippowam Middle School
Feb. 16: Winter recess, no school
|
