MBTA Communities Upzoning Guidelines, ExplainedGuidelines -> https://t.co/RVtXX3zeBW
@BosIndicators @bostonfdn
"This law represents an important shift, with the state taking action to ensure that most eastern Mass. cities and town contribute to addressing our regional housing shortage."
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| MBTA Communities Upzoning Guidelines, Explained (and yes, Franklin is one) |
"The Franklin Area Voting Guide is intended to be a non-partisan resource created by private individuals to allow the people of Franklin, Massachusetts, and surrounding communities to cast an educated vote on issues that impact our community.
Information contained in this guide is provided by candidates and taken verbatim from their survey responses, or sourced from candidate websites/social media accounts, public statements, town halls, and past achievements."
It is a collaborative effort:
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| The Franklin Voters Guide is available |
SENATOR RAUSCH'S STATEMENT ON DESE/DPH MASK WEARING GUIDANCE
"Today, Governor Baker and his administration failed our Commonwealth's children and families. The DESE/DPH masking guidance falls far short of the data-driven recommendations of the CDC, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and hundreds of Massachusetts medical and public health experts: everyone age 2 and up in every school setting – from childcare through grade 12 – must wear masks indoors. Kids, parents, teachers, and school committees have been through enough; they deserve better than weak, unenforceable, non-binding guidelines that further endanger their health and safety."
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| Sen. Rausch slams DESE/DPH non-binding masking recommendations |
"Just released fall guidance from the @MASchoolsK12.
Please note:"Today's guidance is a recommendation for districts, and individual districts should make decisions based on their own particular circumstances."
https://t.co/w4lpqGbr1v"
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| https://twitter.com/MASchoolsK12 |
"All coronavirus-related protocols, including social distancing, will be lifted at schools for the start of the 2021-22 academic year, and every school will be required to be back fully in person, state education officials told superintendents on Thursday.School districts will not be allowed to offer remote learning as a standard learning model, according to the new guidance from the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.“Pathways that existed prior to the pandemic for offering virtual learning to individual students in limited cases will remain available to districts and schools,” including single-district virtual schools or home- or hospital-based tutoring programs for documented medical conditions, the state education agency said."
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ATTN fellow confused parents! Wondering how to keep our younger, not-yet-#vaccine-eligible children safe? Me too. I've got a team of experts to help give us some answers. Join me, Dr. @bethlinas @DrNataliaLinos + Dr. Lael Yanger. Drop your Qs in the replies!
#MApoli #COVID19 -BR https://t.co/FTSaJU33FX
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| Senator Becca Rausch: Navigating the mask guidelines for Families |
"Americans got their first peek Monday at what life may be like in a post-vaccinated world with new federal guidelines that say people who are fully vaccinated can gather privately indoors without masks and without physical distancing.
The much-anticipated recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, described as a first step toward returning to everyday activities, identify someone as fully vaccinated two weeks after their final shot. The timing of the announcement — just weeks before the beginning of spring — comes as many people are tempted to visit family or interact with friends after months of careful isolation."
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| CDC guidance summary table |
"DESE has received approval for schools to allow singing indoors if in-person school is occurring. Singers must wear a mask & be at least 10 feet away from each other plus more.... The updated guidance is here: "
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| M.A.S.S. (@massupt): DESE updates guidance on singing indoors |
From the Executive Summary of the CDC guidance on reopening schools released recently: (RED text for my emphasis)
"As communities plan safe delivery of in-person instruction in K-12 schools, it is essential to decide when and under what conditions to help protect students, teachers, and staff and slow the spread of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. It is critical for schools to open as safely and as soon as possible, and remain open, to achieve the benefits of in-person learning and key support services. To enable schools to open safely and remain open, it is important to adopt and consistently implement actions to slow the spread of SARS-CoV-2 both in schools and in the community. This means that all community members, students, families, teachers, and school staff should take actions to protect themselves and others where they live, work, learn, and play. In short, success in preventing the introduction and subsequent transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in schools is connected to and facilitated by preventing transmission in the broader community."
"The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) put out a flurry of new guidance this week, with advice on topics such as mask wearing and quarantining after COVID-19 exposure.
The guidelines are in response to threats from new, more contagious virus strains, but they also indicate what life post-vaccine might look like in the U.S.
Here are five things to know about the agency's advice."
Direct link to the CDC COVID-19 page https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-nCoV/index.html
From The Hill
"The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Saturday issued a new guidance stating that people with underlying health conditions can receive a coronavirus vaccine.
The guidance explains that “adults of any age with certain underlying medical conditions are at increased risk for severe illness from the virus that causes COVID-19.”
Thus, the CDC added that those vaccines that have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration “may be administered to people with underlying medical conditions provided they have not had a severe allergic reaction to any of the ingredients in the vaccine.”
From the Massachusetts Municipal Association (MMA)
"The Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners in mid-November released a free, 160-page guide to planning new or reconfigured public library spaces.
“This space planning guide will not only help plan flexible and efficient library buildings that meet a community’s unique needs,” said Library Building Specialist Lauren Stara, “it will also save communities time and money as they begin exploring options for a new or reconfigured library.”
“Library Space: A Planning Resource for Librarians” creates a formal set of best practices for designing library space that may be applied to libraries across the nation, according to the Board of Library Commissioners. The guide empowers librarians, administrators, space planners and architects with tools for the planning and design of public library buildings. It takes the user through the step-by-step process of determining what to consider when designing a new library for their community, and includes illustrations of different room types, adjacencies, shelving and seating that can be considered for a building project."
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| Franklin's Library in the sun after a snow storm |
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| Town of Franklin, MA: holiday health and safety guidance |
From the Milford Daily News, articles of interest for Franklin:
"Holidays will need to look different this year, state officials said as they recommended Thanksgiving celebrations be held virtually or limited to one household to minimize COVID-19 transmission risks.
“The science on this one’s pretty clear — gathering in groups indoors for an extended period of time with family and friends is likely the worst possible scenario for spreading the virus,” Gov. Charlie Baker said during a recent press conference.
Pointing to rising COVID-19 case numbers among Massachusetts residents under age 30, Baker again said people should stop hosting parties and other large social gatherings. He urged younger people, who may not experience severe symptoms of the respiratory disease, to think about the relatives they might infect, the health care workers gearing up for a second surge, and the children whose ability to attend in-person school hinges on the rate of virus spread.
Baker said his own Thanksgiving celebration this year will be “immediate family, and that’s it,” and said all families should “think long and hard about the well-being of your loved ones before you make your plans.”
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| Thanksgiving during COVID-19 |
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| Thanksgiving during COVID-19 |
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| Town of Franklin, MA: Halloween Activity Guidelines |
From CommonWealth Magazine we share an article of interest for Franklin:
"MASSACHUSETTS EDUCATION COMMISSIONER Jeff Riley is escalating his push to convince school districts to bring students back in person, asking 16 districts for more information about their plans – and threatening them with a potential audit of their efforts to provide in-person education.
Riley wrote to 16 districts that have consistently ranked green or gray on the state’s color-coded map, which indicate low rates of COVID–19, that chose to start school remotely.“Given your community’s designation of green or gray, I am concerned that the school committee has voted to keep most students learning remotely for the start of the 2020-21 school year,” Riley wrote, pointing to state guidance that recommends these districts bring students back in person.
“In light of the stark discrepancy between local public health data and your reopening plan, I am requesting a timeline by which you anticipate providing in-person instruction for the majority of your students including in-person instruction for vulnerable populations,” Riley continued. He wrote that their responses “may trigger an audit to assess overall efforts to provide in-person instruction” and to ensure their remote learning program is consistent with state guidelines."
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| the home page of Franklin.TV features a link to Franklin Matters |
