APS – AHS NEWSPAPER

New School Committee Members Set Goals for APS

May 23, 2022

Eva Liss
STAFF WRITER

Two new Andover School Committee members, Emily DiCesaro and Sandis Wright, were elected on March 22. Both members aim to aid communication between the Andover community and the district, with a hopeful outlook on their impact.

COURTESY PHOTO / Judge DiCesaro
New school committee member Emily DiCesaro

Emily DiCesaro

DiCesaro has experience listening to, advocating for, and asking questions of the community she serves as a user experience designer at IBM, which may be helpful in meeting her goal of improving interpersonal connections in Andover. She said she decided to run for School Committee after she participated in the search for the new Andover superintendent through a town subcommittee; she was attracted by the optimistic and mutually beneficial relationship between the School Committee and the superintendent. She expressed a strong desire to support Superintendent Magda Parvey and the Andover community to her best ability.

“[The School Committee members] have a common goal. We all want what’s best for the kids of Andover and the teachers,” said DiCesaro. “Starting to remember that and bringing us back to respectful disagreements is important.”

While DiCesaro has only been in office for a few months, she has already set her sights on helping the Andover community in a few specific ways: mending the damage done on mental health by the COVID-19 pandemic, finding new strategies for helping Andover get back on its feet, and creating a better dynamic between the school committee and the citizens of Andover.

“I think there’s relationships that need to be repaired,” said DiCesaro. “We have to figure out ways to show people we’re listening to them.”

She put forward ideas as to how she can bring about this change, such as reaching out to PTO groups or school events and using the district’s budget in creative ways to enhance community spaces like the Cormier Youth Center. Another idea is to research what other towns have done in the past to improve communication and cope with damage. DiCesaro said she knows there will be challenges to her goals, sometimes even from inside the community itself, but she still has hope.

DiCesaro also said she loves Andover itself, and often goes for walks on the AVIS trails with her dog and family. She enjoys gardening and traveling and has even been in a crowd used for sound effects in movies. She said she is excited to help Andover and its community in any way possible.

Sandis Wright

COURTESY PHOTO / Sara Hinchey
New school committee member Sandis Wright

Wright said he knows how to communicate effectively and understand people’s needs, as that is a large part of the various Andover subcommittees he has participated in and the School Committee itself. He’s been involved in many public service groups in Andover, such as the Diversity Equity and Inclusion Committee (DEI), Andover Parent to Parent, and the board of the A Better Chance (ABC) program. Wright went on to say that he believes in public education and looks forward to continuing his “ability to impact and shape our community” through his term as a School Committee member.

“Sometimes people want to shy away from having difficult discussions if there’s something that’s not understood or perceived to be controversial or a taboo topic to discuss,” said Wright. “I hope I can help fill an opportunity with the community where maybe folks don’t feel like they’ve been heard.”

Hearing people’s thoughts and their values is one of Wright’s main goals, along with “minimizing abrasion and frustration” between the School Committee and the community of Andover, whether they be parents, teachers, or students. He said he was motivated to find a greater positive impact in the school committee position through his participation in DEI and ABC, and will look forward to continuing to help Andover.

Wright works as Managing Director of Information Management at Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, a healthcare provider. He said he thinks this will help him to be a better school committee member because he already has experience searching for innovative opportunities. He also said he knows that both his day job and the responsibilities of the School Committee are aimed to achieve the best possible outcomes for personal and widespread groups of people, and that he is confident in his ability to handle whatever challenges may come.

Upon seeing Superintendent Magda Parvey’s results from the feedback survey she sent out to the district’s community, Wright said he was impressed by the importance, thoughtfulness, and prominence of Andover students’ thoughts and needs. “I’m excited to amplify the student voice,” said Wright. “[and] I am reenergized when I hear from our young generation.”

In his free time, Wright enjoys gardening, traveling, and cooking or trying new foods.

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APS Mask Mandate Lifted

April 7, 2022

Naomi Bloom
STAFF WRITER

On the night of March 4, the mask mandate in Andover Public Schools was lifted by the APS School Committee. APS students and staff are no longer required to wear masks in school or at school-sponsored events.

Because of the schools’ high vaccination rates and the steady decrease in COVID-19 cases prior to the mandate being lifted as well as the state mandate being lifted, the committee determined that it would be safe to stop wearing masks in school. Many were excited that the mandate was ending, and the committee’s decision was supported by the majority of the community.

Since then, many people have stopped wearing masks, but there are some who are keeping their masks on. Ohad Mamet, a junior, said that he is planning on wearing a mask until the cases stabilize. “I want to wait a while before I stop wearing it to make sure there are no new outbreaks caused from everyone stopping wearing their masks at once,” he said. This was a common concern since the mandate was lifted just a week after February break, but the cases have not increased too dramatically. In fact, the cases have mostly declined since the break.

The numbers of weekly reported COVID-19 cases in AHS and the APS district.

AHS junior Diya Ganesh, while a bit worried about the mandate getting lifted, noted that it may not make that big of a difference. “Cases seem to be okay, which is all that really matters,” said Ganesh. “[It’s] not like people were really wearing masks all that well before.” Mamet agreed. “The mandate was helpful initially, but just became useless and annoying when people refused to wear their masks properly,” he said. “Lifting the mandate didn’t really change anything from a safety perspective as most of the people who wore masks properly are still wearing masks and the ones who didn’t aren’t.”

“I think at first a lot of people wanted to keep their masks on, but as time went on, I think people realized that it was unnecessary,” said Freshman Ian Chiang. “It’s comfortable to not have one on… I personally feel safe enough to not wear one myself.” He also said that if COVID cases were to increase, he would start masking again.

Interestingly, an email from AHS principal Caitlin Brown to teachers on March 7 said that because the policy has been changed to mask optional, there is no longer a need for mask breaks. Instead, Brown wrote, “Students in masks can take a break in the classroom as needed.” Junior Riley Cox thought that this didn’t make sense, because it would defeat the purpose of those students wearing masks in the first place. However, there are some teachers who allow masking students or the whole class to take short breaks in the hallway if needed.

A concern of School Committee members was the potential for harassment and division between people who continued to wear their masks and those who chose not to. “Are teachers prepared to address that kind of behavior in their classrooms?” asked Tracy Spruce, a member of the Andover School Committee. “If we’re going to do this, I want to be confident that the level of instability we’ve experienced over this issue is not going to translate into our classrooms.” While this “instability” has not been too common at AHS, some have experienced it. “I’ve faced some from a select group of kids, but most people haven’t said anything,” said Cox. However, Superintendent Dr. Magda Parvey stated that the schools’ general anti-bullying policy will deal with these types of issues.

Additionally, there was a push from parents in the community to lift the mandate. When Andover Patch asked about people’s thoughts on the mandate on Facebook, some had strong opinions. “This is so long overdue,” said user Tim Pitta. “History will never understand why we put our children through this… Shame on our policy makers for not lifting this mandate a long time ago.” Another user, Traci Babcock-Connor, claimed that mask mandates are “child abuse,” and that “[t]he fear and anxiety created are criminal and [there] needs to be accountability.” On the other hand, there were many who felt the decision was made too soon.

Nevertheless, the mask mandate was passed, and the number of cases is continuing to go down. People have been mostly supportive of their peers’ choices. “I am confident that all in the community will be respectful and supportive of an individual’s choice to either wear a mask or not,” said Parvey.

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School Committee Defers Mask Mandate Decision

February 24, 2022

Avi Shapira
ONLINE EDITOR

On February 17, the Andover Public Schools Committee discussed making masks optional in APS after February break, following a change in state guidelines.

The change to the mask policy recommended by Superintendent Dr. Magda Parvey, based on data provided by Director of Nursing Rita Casper and Director of Public Health Thomas Carbone, was to make masks optional in APS schools starting on March 7, a week after returning from break. Following multiple hours of discussion, the Committee decided to vote on the issue in their next meeting on March 3.

In addition to making masks optional, the change in policy will also “delegate masking decisions to the superintendent in consultation with public health experts” according to a Facebook post made by School Committee member Shannon Scully.

Over sixty members of the public attended the meeting, with many speaking about the masks issue. The audience frequently interrupted the meeting by clapping loudly or shouting. The Committee asked for all to be quiet multiple times.

All members of the public who gave public input in the meeting were in favor of making masks optional in schools starting February 28. However, School Committee member Paul Murphy noted the Committee has received emails from Andover residents in favor of making masks optional at a later date.

Taking two meetings to vote on a proposal is the regular protocol for School Committee decisions. However, many members of the public attending the meeting requested the Committee hold an emergency meeting before February 28 or go against protocol and take a vote in the February 17 meeting, due to the nature of the issue. “We just don’t want this to keep going on,” said parent Concetta Archambault.

Speakers asked the Committee to make a decision before returning to school from break to ensure clarity on the issue of masks, rather than confuse and stress out students and parents.

The committee decided to wait until March to vote so they can take more time to consider the issue. There is currently support from the Committee to make masks optional starting March 7, but the official vote will take place on March 3.

The superintendent recommended the mandate be lifted on March 7 because after every school break since the start of COVID there has been a spike in cases, based on data provided by Carbone and Casper. After Christmas break, there was an especially high spike, with students missing in many classes at Andover High School due to being quarantined.

COURTESY PHOTO / Andover TV
Thomas Carbone, Director of Public Health, and Rita Casper, Director of Nursing, speaking at the School Committee meeting

School Committee Chairperson Susan McCready suggested the mandate be lifted starting on the night of March 4 instead of Monday March 7 so the sophomore semi-formal dance on March 5 can be mask-optional. This will be decided in the next meeting.

Despite the recent spike, lifting the mask mandate was recommended because of the consistent decline in cases since return from winter break and the high vaccination rates at APS. Not including at-home antigen tests, only six students tested positive for COVID in the week preceding break, and over 70% of students are vaccinated in all APS schools except Shawsheen Preschool. In AHS, 89% of students are partially or fully vaccinated.

After the mask mandate is lifted, students will still be required to wear a mask for ten days after testing positive for COVID, in health facilities, and on school buses due to federal regulations regarding public transport.

Despite the lack of a mandate, students who are immunocompromised or unvaccinated are encouraged to continue to wear masks if they become optional.

Speakers from the public raised various concerns about continuing to mandate masks.

Many speakers talked about removing masks as a sign of return to normalcy and that it would increase feelings of safety and consistency among kids. They also noted the increase of mental health issues over COVID has partially been due to feelings of fear among students, and that removing the mask mandate would help everyone feel as if the situation is getting better.

Tara Dunham, a mental health professional, said, “Fear does not prevent death, it prevents life.” Rhonda Rosner, a parent to students in APS, said masks demonstrate “learned helplessness” to kids.

Speakers also mentioned the negative effects of masks on child development and learning; difficulties masks cause for students with hearing, speech and sensory related disabilities; and some studies showing mask mandates had little effect on slowing the spread of COVID.

Additionally, eighth grader Carmela Balitty said that if the mandate was not lifted prior to the 28th, she and some of her friends would refuse to wear masks in school, and if they were forced to, they would walk out and peacefully protest. “I refuse to wear something oppressed onto me,” she explained. While she said that she didn’t think their actions alone would change the mandate, it would “make a statement.”

The School Committee had a mixed response to lifting the mandate, agreeing with the benefits of it being lifted while voicing concerns.

While agreeing it was time to “take a step forward,” School Committee member Tracey Spruce worried about the effect of the policy change on immunocompromised community members, and teachers who had kids too young to be vaccinated. Those sentiments were met with heavy criticism from some audience members.

Vice Chairperson Lauren Conoscenti pointed out that many towns in the area are lifting their mandates on March 7 or later. She echoed concerns about the risk for immunocompromised people, sharing the experience of being immunocompromised herself.

The Committee also voiced concerns about possible bullying of students who continue to wear masks if the mandate is lifted, considering the tension the issue drew. It was mentioned by a member of the public that bullying of students who will not be wearing masks is possible as well. Parvey noted APS already has a code of conduct regarding bullying.

According to Justin Jin, an AHS Student Government representative at the meeting, opinion over lifting the mandate is divided among AHS students. Based on a survey Student Government conducted, of about 800 student responses, 49% of students support going mask-optional, 33% are against the change, and 16% are not sure.

Regardless of whether the mandate passes or not, Jin hopes the Andover community will stay strong. “I just hope our community stays together,” he said, about his personal view on the mandate.

You can watch the meeting at Andover TV: https://cloud.castus.tv/vod/andover/video/620f1544112ca600080356c4?page=HOME

Article contributed to by Naomi Bloom

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Superintendent Discusses Student Voice

January 13, 2022

Avi Shapira

ONLINE EDITOR

In June of 2021, Dr. Magda Parvey was hired by Andover Public Schools (APS) for a three-year term as superintendent, replacing interim superintendent Dr. Claudia Bach.

COURTESY PHOTO / Magda Parvey

Bach was hired as temporary superintendent at the beginning of 2021 after Dr. Sheldon Berman left at the end of 2020. Berman started as superintendent in 2015.

Parvey is also the first superintendent of color in Andover.

In explaining why she chose to take a job in this particular town, Parvey stated that “Andover had a good reputation of academic excellence and forward thinking in terms of education, students, and equity.” Parvey was the chief academic officer in Middletown, Connecticut before taking a job in Andover. Previously, she was an assistant superintendent, and before that, a teacher and principal. Before moving to Andover, she served in district-level roles for 13 years.

After teaching for seven years, Parvey figured she “could have wider impact” if she took on a role where she could reach beyond just the students in her classroom. This made her decide to become a principal.

Parvey said that she has always had a passion for curriculum and instruction and working with both students and teachers. She wanted to do more work around the curriculum and help improve it. “[As superintendent], I have a hand in [the curriculum] without having my hand slapped for not following what someone else from central office was saying had to be done, whether I believed that it was good or not,” said Parvey. For this reason she decided to become assistant superintendent and work at the district level.

Becoming a superintendent during a pandemic has been challenging, but Parvey is glad she is able to do so in the middle rather than beginning of the pandemic. This year everyone is all in-person and has more certainty. “I don’t think anything has been easy,” Parvey said with a smile.

As the first superintendent of color in Andover, Parvey is able to bring another perspective to the mostly white administration of APS. “I get to show whatever beliefs there may be out there about students, adults, families of color, that… [people of color] have different experiences and perspectives and we do have a voice,” said Parvey. “I can actually push back and ask questions about the way things are done and always have been done and ask people, ‘Who does this benefit?’… ‘Are we really thinking about all of our students?’”

Figuring out how administrative decisions affect students is one of the things that are important to Parvey. She wants to hear the concerns of students, families, teachers and administrators. “People want to be heard,” she said.

In her six months as superintendent, Parvey has held office hours to talk to community members. She also plans on sending out a survey and holding focus groups with students and families. Generally, she has been trying to engage with the school community in student and community events. “I love the student performances, I love to see the student work,” Parvey said. “The job calls for genuine engagement and community building, and I think that’s important and that’s what I’m doing.”

In order to engage with students, Parvey has attended meetings with the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Student Advisory Committee (DEI) and plans on attending Student Government Association (SGA) meetings. She described hearing “so much insight” from students. “They are our most valued customers, our prized possession… At the end of the day it’s about students,” she said.

Parvey added that she would like to hear more from students in the future.

“Change comes… from students saying ‘Here is what we really need.’ Adults are planning over here but students are like, ‘Stop planning, this is what we need.’ So I would like to hear from students and what they need,” said Parvey.

Besides hearing more from the community, Parvey wants Andover to live up to its reputation and make sure as many students as possible have an excellent experience. She is especially concerned about all minority students having good experiences regardless of their “race, gender and sexuality—all of those things that really [should not] matter when you’re talking about making sure you’re educating students and allowing them to feel like they have a voice.”

When Parvey is not working as superintendent, she likes to run, do pilates, read, and listen to music. After a busy job, one of her favorite things is “doing absolutely nothing and decompressing and trying to clear [her] head.”