The Lynn Education District, which ties together Lynn Public Schools, KIPP Academy, St. Mary’s, and several key non-profit agencies who serve school-age children, is putting its collective heads together to ensure that students who might be in need of meals while schools are closed due to the COVID-19 virus have those needs met.
KIPP director Caleb Dolan organized a conference call with the various heads of school, branch directors and CEOs Friday afternoon to coordinate an organized response to the closing of schools in Lynn at least through the end of the month.
“At KIPP we are grateful to be surrounded by school and community partners who believe, like James Baldwin wrote, that ‘all the children are always ours,’ Dolan wrote in an email sent out to all Education District members.
Lynn Public Schools will be closed until March 27, and while Superintendent Dr. Patrick Tutwiler stressed that no one in the district has been diagnosed with the virus, the move is being made “out of an abundance of caution.”
He also warned that it was possible that schools would remain closed much longer.
“After March 27, we will re-evaluate whether or not to open schools, and will make a decision to do so on a weekly basis. There is potential for extended school closure,” he wrote in a mailing to parents in the district.
“Accordingly, all families should make plans for child care until April 17,” he said.
The district, beginning Monday, will offer a free grab-and-go lunch service for all LPS students at Classical, English, Lynn Vocational Technical Institute and Marshall Middle School, between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. Also, beginning Monday, Tutwiler said, families can access academic activities and resources by grade on their school’s website.
“Students should engage daily with these activities and resources,” he said, adding that if parents cannot access the activities via computer, they can obtain paper-based activities and resources at all schools from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Both KIPP and St. Mary’s are also closed for the next two weeks. St. Mary’s Head of School Dr. John Dolan said that his school is also providing on-line lesson plans while Caleb Dolan of KIPP said that his students will study from paper-based activities.
Caleb Dolan said KIPP will also be serving breakfast and lunch, mainly, on a grab-and-go basis.
Like Tutwiler, both Dolans said that they anticipated that their schools may be closed for a lot longer, but that they are planning for the next two weeks.
St. Mary’s has a vendor, Dr. John Dolan said, who will step in and help students at the school who might have trouble with breakfast and lunch.
Other groups around Lynn are pitching in too. While the Lynn YMCA is adhering to a Metro North directive to limit activities to members (no guest passes), close the gym and allow lap swimming only, it is remaining open, branch director Andrea Baez said.
“We will try to help kids with meals,” she said, adding that while the Y generally provides a hot meal for those who need one, it is making plans to provide lunches too.
Lynn Economic Opportunity CEO Birgitta Damon said that LEO is open for business.
“We had an emergency preparedness meeting this week. We’ll know more next week, but our plan is to stay open. We provide breakfast, lunch and a snack, and we’ll continue to do that.”
LEO will also keep its fuel assistance office up and running.
Also remaining open will be Girls Inc. Raw Artworks, however, will be closed as long as Lynn’s schools are.
“We are following in the path of the public schools,” said executive director Kit Jenkins. “We asked our folks to work from home.”