Have you noticed the scarecrows throughout Smithfield? Smithfield High School's National Honor Society's fundraising effort for the month of November is the Sentinel Scarecrow Army. There are 90 scarecrows stationed around the town of Smithfield at our schools and municipal buildings. Scarecrows have QR codes that bring you to different non-profit websites where you can make a donation or join these non-profits. A handful of locations (Town Hall, Smithfield High School, Old County Elementary School, the School Administration Building, and the police department) are accepting canned food donations that will be donated to various food banks in Smithfield. Food donations will be accepted until November 22nd. The goal of the National Honor Society is to help the less fortunate families in Smithfield celebrate Thanksgiving. Please help them achieve this goal!
OCRS Building Project Progress: Footings for the new elevator are in place & work to the front of the building includes new sewer pipes. Next week, compaction of the fill in the front, along with excavation for the foundation & perimeter walls of the addition will be completed.
New blog post: ongoing work to keep our school environments safe:
Prepare * Prevent * Respond * Recover
https://judypaolucci.edublogs.org
ELEMENTARY CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS UPDATE: At McCabe, foundations and slabs for the new addition have been poured, structural steel has been completed, and exterior light gauge metal framing work for the new gym is 90% complete. Crews are now beginning to work on the exterior, cold-rolled steel framing on the Northern side of the addition and on installing interior sheathing in the gym. Landscaping for this phase is completed and site improvements to the new bus loop have been finalized ahead of schedule. Work that will continue into November includes roofing and MEP enabling work for the new gym. The RI COVID task force recently performed an unannounced inspection and gave the jobsite top marks.
October was a milestone month at LaPerche with structural steel being completed only 7 working days after it began. Students and staff celebrated with a “topping off” ceremony. All other steel work, including installation of the metal roof deck, was also completed this month. The completion of the steel work allowed the team to pour the slabs for the interior footprint of the building on schedule. In the existing building, the work in the gym was completed and the kids were able to use this beautiful new space starting the last week of October. Work for the month of November will focus on constructing the building envelope and getting the building weather tight.
Work at Old County is primarily focused on sitework, preparing for the pouring of foundations and piers. We expect that work to take place within the new few weeks, in tandem with the structural steel work.
RIDOH is hiring temporary employees to do case investigations.
Apply here: https://success.knowledgeservices.com/ri
As part of the emergency response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH) has retained Knowledge Services to provide temporary staff members to assist with case investigation and contact tracing. Chosen candidates will conduct interviews of patients with confirmed or probable COVID-19, as well as any primary contacts of individuals who have tested positive, focusing on motivational interviewing and cultural competency. Clinical experience is not required and all information necessary to conduct the interviews will be provided during the training period.
Interviews Guided by the Following Standard Protocols:
Providing disease-specific information
Assessing signs and symptoms of COVID-19, as well as underlying health conditions
Discussing symptom onset to determine time/dates for contact elicitation and exposure risk for close contacts
Discussing work, social, recreational, and community activities to identify who may have been exposed
Eliciting information of close contacts, including names, exposure dates and locating information
Providing recommendations for isolation or quarantine based on State and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines and reviewing of daily monitoring procedures
Assessing support needs to maintain health and compliance during isolation or quarantine
Communicating with contacts to notify them of exposure, providing disease and transmission information, gathering data on demographics, living arrangements, and daily activities
Providing referrals for testing (if appropriate) and arranging for testing, if needed
Soft Skills Requirements:
Strong attention to detail
Good phone etiquette when speaking to individuals from all demographics and life situations
Empathetic/customer service centered attitude, even when dealing with abrasive individuals
Dependable and flexible to changes as we work our way through this pandemic
Inquisitive nature/ability to think outside the box to collect as much relevant information as possible
Ability to multitask as you will have to speak with individuals, enter data, and relay information to the appropriate team/team leader as needed
Additional Information:
These new positions will be contracted for an emergency short-term basis, which is currently planned to be 6-12 months.
The roles will be on-site at RIDOH, remote work may be available after a 4-6-week training period and a competency assessment.
Priority will be given to applicants with the following qualifications:
Applicants who are bilingual or multilingual
Applicants available for full-time work (35 hours/week), including weekends
Applicants who can work through at least the end of the year if needed
Applicants who have experience with data entry while taking information from patients
Applicants who have experience with customer service with patients, healthcare providers and the general public
Applicants who work well in a team environment
Read the news from Smithfield Schools! The November district newsletter is now available on this link: https://bit.ly/3kEguMf
RIDE created a “Fall Learning Opportunities Directory,” listing learning opportunities open to all students statewide. See this link: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/59a81489579fb39e3ef2232f/t/5f90554436ebbd41ce1d0236/1603294533942/Fall+Learning+Opportunities+Directory.pdf
Please ensure that everyone enjoys a SAFE Halloween this year.
Consider the Trunk or Treat Spooktacular at No Risk Crossfit.
Outside and with social distancing rules in place. Register at info!noriskcrossfit.com.
Looking for a safe family activity? Join families across the country who are carrying lights of hope forward into winter and 2021. This tradition is designed to teach kids to embrace change, connect with nature and community. 4pm-5pm on November 1st at Mowry Commons (374 Farnum Pike in Smithfield). Registration required - www.revivetheroots.org or call 305-0539
Looking for a safe activity for Halloween? Check out the Halloween Story Walk! 11am-3pm on October 31st at Mowry Commons (374 Farnum Pike in Smithfield). Enjoy a trail adventure as you read a story posted along the path. Families will enjoy decorated trails, a scavenger hunt, visits with the animals, and free, gently-used books. Wear your costumes! Registration required - www.revivetheroots.org or call 305-0539
Parents are invited to check out this virtual, interactive display showing signs of risky behavior and possible drug use and the tools needed to have constructive conversations: http://spc-hips.com
LaPerche was featured in the RI Healthy School Coalition's October newsletter! Take a look at https://mailchi.mp/rihsc/oct2020.
In partnership with RIDE, Smithfield is conducting Child Outreach Screening online! Do you have a child who is 3, 4, or 5 years old? Contact us at childoutreach@smithfield-ps.org to begin this process or to ask questions. We can also be reached by calling 401-231-6608.
Students at LaPerche and Winsor tasted a delicious kale salad on Kale Day 2020! This is part of our farm-to-school initiative with the goal of encouraging a healthy lifestyle by increasing access to locally grown fruits and veggies. Thank you to our partner Chartwells!
Smithfield's LaPerche Elementary School made the New York Times! It's not just about opening in a pandemic but about providing great instruction by great teachers to great students under great leadership. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/09/us/how-rhode-island-reopened-schools.html
LaPerche's steel-topping-off ceremony acknowledged a milestone in the school's building project. Steel has been erected and work will soon be underway to enclose the addition so that construction can continue through the winter months. Students gave speeches and, along with members of the school committee, signed the last piece of steel before the crane hoisted the steel into place.
The free and reduced meal application is now available online! You can access it at www.myschoolapps.com. This service will eliminate the need for a paper application and will streamline the process of applying. Apply today!
The District's October newsletter is now available on this link, as well as on the district's website. There's plenty of good news to share in Smithfield! https://bit.ly/2S5eq3u
Thank you for your patience as we work on new routines for drop off and pick up. Here's how everyone can help:
* If you know that drop off occurs along the driver's side, have your child sit on that side so that they can open the door and pop out.
* Have your child put on their mask and grab their backpack prior to getting to the front of the line.
* Have tickets ready... photocopy extra tickets for the glove compartment
* Shower your child with kisses BEFORE getting to the front of the line!
* If your child has a spot on the bus, let them take the bus. If you have a spot but don't plan to use it, give it up so that we can put other children on that bus. The first bus at OCRS today had only one child on it!
We are looking for a couple of parents and staff members to join Smithfield's District Improvement Team. The first meeting of the team will take place on September 28, 2020 at 4:30pm in the PD Room at 49 Farnum Pike (administration building). The team's mission is to monitor the progress of the district toward the goals in our strategic plan. We meet 3 times per year - September, January, and May. Please contact the superintendent if interested.