LANSDALEÂ â North Penn students got good news Thursday night: the masks can come off when they re outside.
The school board voted unanimously Thursday night to change their COVID health and safety plan, removing the mask requirement for students at certain times outside, and directing that those classes be held outdoors when possible. In this particular motion, it would say that masks would not be required during outdoor recess or during outdoor phys ed classes, said Superintendent Curt Dietrich.
- Advertisement -
Since the board voted in March to reduce the amount of distancing in classrooms, talks have continued between the board and its various committees on how to further relax their COVID precautions, as state and county officials pull back too. The updated health and safety plan adopted Thursday night changes only two sentences from earlier versions, noting that Masks will not be required during outdoor recess or during outdoor physical education classes, and Ph
Those parents spoke out, and district officials answered, during the board s public meeting on Tuesday night. We find ourselves at an inflection point in this community. A recent event at the high school has reignited debate about how to support all students, regardless of race, religious belief, ethnicity, and gender, said school board President Tina Stoll.
- Advertisement - People are questioning our commitment to making all students feel safe, respected and included in the North Penn experience. It is a call to action, she said.
On May 4, according to district officials and police, three students were involved in a fight in the high school s cafeteria, and during the fight a Black female Muslim student had her hijab removed and was made to leave the cafeteria area without it. District officials issued an apology for doing so Thursday, after reactions from across the regionquestioning the district s response and treatment of race in the school. Stoll read a formal statement
LANSDALEÂ â Just days after hearing of a growing deficit in the district s extended school care program, North Penn School Board voted against a proposed fee hike. We need to lower as many obstacles as possible for the community to access the services so desperately needed to catch up after the pandemic crisis, said board member Jonathan Kassa.
On Tuesday night the school board s finance committee heard details of a massive deficit for the district extended care department, which provides professional child care to students outside of school hours. Prior to the pandemic, that department had a roughly $956,000 surplus, but the shutdown of schools and subsequent work-from-home environment over the past year caused enrollment to plummet by more than 500 students, from 839 to 317Â according to district staff, resulting in a $720,000 deficit for the current year.Â
1 of 3
Images provided by The Schrader Group of issues identified and repairs needed in North Penn High School s basement storage and band room areas, as presented in a virtual tour of the high school and discussed during the March 29, 2021 facilities and operations committee meeting.
Courtesy of North Penn School District
Images provided by The Schrader Group of issues identified and repairs needed in North Penn High School s family and consumer sciences and mechanical areas, as presented in a virtual tour of the high school and discussed during the March 29, 2021 facilities and operations committee meeting.
Courtesy of North Penn School District
LANSDALEÂ â Just days after vowing to stand with local minority communities, North Penn officials are now discussing ways to do so.
Staff and the school board started talks Monday night on how to better build ties between the district s diverse racial and ethic groups. We ve had conversations on the horrific acts of violence, and the increase in hate crimes that we ve seen on TV, and in the news, related to our Asian American and Pacific Islander communities, said assistant superintendent Todd Bauer.
- Advertisement - We really wanted to take a step back, to develop some action items that administration, the district, the school board, and our students could put in place, that were not just, for lack of better phrasing, check boxes, he said.