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08/31/2022 01:03 PMNORTH BRANFORD
Superintendent of Schools Scott Schoonmaker said there was something special about seeing students’ smiling faces as they arrived for the first day of school on Aug. 31: no masks. He also shared updates on continued efforts to involve police with the school community; as well as news of the high school construction project, research underway to develop a clean manufacturing associates degree training program at the high school, and more.
Back to Smiles
Although the district, state, and Centers for Disease Control (CDC) eased COVID facial mask restrictions last spring to mask optional for students and staff, this start of the new school year was the first time in two years that kids got off the bus or exited the family vehicle to greet their teachers and friends without masks on their faces.
“With the CDC releasing the most updated information, we have the ability now to get back to as close to normal as we possibly can. It’s amazing when you see their entire face and they beam with a smile after being in a mask for two and half years. It’s a great step, and we’re excited to be moving forward,” said Schoonmaker.
As he does each first day of school, Schoonmaker, together with representatives of North Branford Police Department, were on hand to greet students as they arrived at each of the town’s four school buildings.
“We’re looking to increase our visibility with our local police for many reasons. It’s another way for our law enforcement to get to be able to know the students and the community, and be a part of our school system, and for just building relationships,” said Schoonmaker. “We want our students to know our police officers, like all of us, really care about the well-being of all our students. We want to support those relationships.”
Schoonmaker said first-day morning arrivals went smoothly on Aug. 31, even with a few of those emotional send-offs experienced by the district’s youngest.
“The little ones are always the toughest for me [to greet]; because for many of them, it’s the first time for separation. Some of them are really emotional – including the moms and dads!”
The town’s public schools include North Branford High School (NBHS, 9 to12), North Branford Intermediate School (NBIS, 6 to 8), Totoket Valley Elementary School (TVES, 3 to 5) and Jerome Harrison Elementary School (PreK to 2).
Noteworthy News and Updates
NBHS and NBIS share campus spaces, where construction traffic patterns from last year remain in place, due to construction continuing on the new NBHS three-story academic building. The building is Phase 1 of the two-phase project.
Schoonmaker said teamwork between the school buildings, together with the police department and the construction company, are combining to keep student traffic flowing. The district even took drone views of campus area traffic last year to help review traffic patterns and keep vehicles flowing during the construction period.
Once again, NBIS students are encouraged to ride the bus this year, rather than arrive in family vehicles, to help lessen the traffic load on busy Route 80, when school morning arrival times can coincide with rush hour.
“The fewer cars that have to get in and out of the middle school, with Route 80 and the congestion there, the better,” said Schoonmaker. “But we have a plan in place, and we’ll work through it. Whatever it is, we’ll be prepared."
Schoonmaker said NBHS Phase 1 building work is on schedule, with an anticipated late December 2022/early January 2023 target date for completion. Hitting the target will be based on the continued strength of the workforce and the supply chain, he noted.
“We’ve been blessed so far,” Schoonmaker said, adding the building is in the midst of being “buttoned up.”
“The windows are going in now. The roofing is almost complete. We’re where we want to be,” he said.
Once students move in to the new academic wing in early 2023, the second phase of the project will start with demolition of sections of the former NBHS building; then final construction will begin. The project’s Phase 2 building construction will tie the rest of the new NBHS building into the new academic wing, to complete the project.
“We’re looking out two academic years to being in the completed building, which is exciting,” said Schoonmaker.
Another exciting program Schoonmaker is working to bring to the high school in the near future is the district’s clean manufacturing associate degree program. As previously reported, the program is in the research phase. It’s anticipated to be offered in a free-standing building at the back of the high school that would need to go through a future approval process to be constructed. Students in the program would receive their associate degree when they graduate from NBHS.
“That’s a huge aspect,” said Schoonmaker. “You don’t take on all of that college debt, and then have to go out to find a career. So we’re looking to what the needs are, not only in the state but in our nation, of employability in clean manufacturing with great, fair wages and benefits. We’re excited about it.”