By Ally Lanasa, Staff Writer

(March 25, 2021) The following occurred during the Worcester County Board of Education meeting last Tuesday:

Proclamation

The school board presented Lauren Williams, the coordinator of school health services, with a proclamation for School Social Work Month this March as well as a special recognition for her services.

PHOTO COURTESY WORCESTER COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS
Lauren Williams, the coordinator of school health services, received a special recognition last Tuesday during the Worcester County Board of Education meeting for leading the county school system in developing safety protocols and a covid-19 testing program. Pictured, from left, are Eric Cropper, Worcester County Board of Education president, Williams and Superintendent of Schools Lou Taylor.

“Lauren Williams we hired when the state allowed us to hire a mental health coordinator in every school system a little over a year ago. We were fortunate enough to get somebody of this caliber, and I say that because she brought a wealth of knowledge into the mental health arena,” said Superintendent of Schools Lou Taylor. “She’s been instrumental in the development and execution of health and safety protocols for our ‘Responsible Return.’”

Williams is also the point of contact for anyone in the school system with covid-like illnesses.

“I will tell you, including the superintendent of schools, her job has been the most vital or the most important job in the last 12 months in this school system,” Taylor said.

Teacher of the Year

Taylor said Worcester County Public Schools will livestream a celebration for the 2021 Teacher of the Year on March 26 at 6 p.m. Finalists and the 2021 Teacher of the Year will be announced that evening.

The nominees for Teacher of the Year are: Caleb Wilson from Stephen Decatur Middle School, Laura Wheeler from Showell Elementary School, Lauren Walker from Pocomoke Elementary School, Nicholas Traud from Snow Hill High School, Jennifer Taylor from Pocomoke High School, Aarti Sangwan from Worcester Technical High School, Stacey Russell from Cedar Chapel Special School, Melissa Reid from Buckingham Elementary School, Ellen Masters from Berlin Intermediate, Kurt Marx from Stephen Decatur High School, Cara Kurtz from Snow Hill Middle School, Catherine (Kitty) Herr from Ocean City Elementary School, Beverly Hart from Pocomoke Middle School and Mia Byrd from Snow Hill Elementary School.

“These teachers are outstanding examples of high-quality teaching occurring in our classrooms across this great school system,” Taylor said.

Visit worcesterk12.org or Worcester County Public Schools MD on Facebook for more details about viewing.

Job fair

Taylor also said a countywide teacher job fair will be held on March 27 by appointment only from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Covid-19 testing

Williams said school nurses have been trained to administer rapid tests (BinexNOW) and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests (MAKO Medical Labs).

With the rapid test, results are reported to CRISP and to parents by nurses. As for the PCR tests, resulted are reported directly by the lab to families in patient portal after the sample is sent to MAKO by FedEx.

Amanda Underkoffler, the school nurse consultant in the county school system, said teachers were trained about how to provide information in age-appropriate ways. For elementary school students, it’s best to explain in a story-like manner as well as give children a job and praise them for how well they are doing during the test. For secondary students, nurses are advised to explain the equipment and why the test is being performed as well as use calming strategies.

A continuing need for the covid-19 testing program for K-12 students is maintaining an adequate supply of PPE, tests and cleaning supplies in the health suite.

Safety update

Dr. Dwayne Abt, chief safety & human relations officer for the county school system, said planning for the summer safety conference is underway. The conference is scheduled to take place on Aug. 11, 2021.

Agreements

The school board approved the ratified negotiated agreements from the Worcester County Teachers’ Association and the Worcester County Educational Support Personnel Association, which will provide a step increase for eligible employees, an increase for salary scale adjustments, modification to existing contract language and a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for the Worcester County Teachers’ Association.

Showell Elementary

Joe Price, the school system’s facilities planner, said the current payments to date on the new Showell Elementary School project total approximately $38.58 million. The remaining balance is about $1.5 million.

With the unanimous approval of the requisition, Price said 12 of the 15 contractors will be fully paid.