4/1/22
April Greetings!
First, a quick reminder, that on Monday, April 4, we will have a half-day of school for students, with dismissal at 11:30 a.m. Faculty and staff will have an in-service afternoon.
Thankfully, we have gone another week without any reported cases of COVID-19 in our school. While the number of COVID-19 cases in Vermont remains low, the Agency of Education has made the decision to discontinue the Test at Home and Tests for Tots programs for schools as of April 4th. With these programs ending, families are being directed to make an appointment using the Vermont Department of Health “Where to Get Tested” website page. This site also provides information on how to obtain test kits for use at home.
Although these testing programs are ending, we will still be allowed to test symptomatic students and staff in the Nurse’s office, using either rapid antigen tests or LAMP tests. Changes of this nature may seem startling, but the silver lining is that we are just one step further along the path to the endemic phase of COVID-19.
Moving forward also means we are resuming some of our pre-COVID activities and initiatives, such as the World Language Program. Perhaps you have already heard your kids coming home this week speaking a few words in Chinese, French, German, Japanese, Spanish, or Swedish! These are the languages that Bennington College advanced foreign language students and native speakers are teaching to different grades at our school. The student-teachers work under the supervision and organization of Bennington College language faculty, and their goals are to help our students develop a broader perspective of the world and to share the joy of learning a new language.
While we have much to celebrate and enjoy in our school community these days, our hearts and minds also continue to be focused on the Russia-Ukraine War. When author/illustrator Sandra Magsamen visited our school last week as part of her World of Wishes Campaign and students were prompted to finish the sentence, “I wish…” and draw a picture of a wish that matters to them, many of our students drew wishes for peace. I would like to share with you the poignant video that Ms. Magsamen created from a compilation of our students’ drawings and messages. It is posted on our school’s YouTube channel.
Have a good weekend,
Tim
2021-2022 Business Partners in Education
Thank you to the following businesses for their ongoing support of The Village School:
GOLD LEVEL
Bank of Bennington: https://thebankofbennington.com/
RCS Consulting: https://www.rcs.consulting/
SILVER LEVEL
D.B. McKenna & Co., Inc.: https://www.dbmckenna.com/
Danielle D. Fogarty, PLC: https://www.ddfplc.com/
Whitman’s / Poulin Grain: https://www.whitmansfeed.com/
BRONZE LEVEL
Adam’s Lock & Security: https://www.adamslockvt.com/
Idena Beach Photography:: https://www.idenabeach.com/
Maple Leaf Realty: https://www.mapleleafvermont.com/
Pangaea: https://vermontfinedining.com/
Power Guru: https://www.power-guru.com
West Oil Company: https://westoilcompany.com/
Williams Financial, LLC: https://williamsfinancial.net/
SPONSORS
Bennington Express Car Wash and Repair: https://www.benningtonlubeandwash.com/
Bennington House of Tile and Carpet: https://bennington.abbeycarpet.com/
Bolio Propane Service, LLC: https://www.facebook.com/BolioPropaneServiceLLC/
Casella Waste Systems: https://www.casella.com/casella
The Bennington Bookshop: https://www.benningtonbookshop.com/
The Roasted Bean: https://www.the-roasted-bean.com/
