Support 8th Grade Fundraising Efforts
The eighth graders are planning several activities to offer a student contribution to the 8th grade Legacy gift. This year the gift will support the renovation of the 5th and 6th grade science room into a marine biology lab with new seating and fish tank. The events listed below have all been planned, and will be run, by eighth graders as a part of their philanthropy unit in their contributing citizens class.

Here are the upcoming events for contributing to the Legacy gift:

• Dress Down Day: Friday, May 7; suggested donation of $2 to $5. 
• Tiger Tourney 2021: Monday May 3, until Friday, May 7. This tournament will include spikeball (2v2), cornhole (2v2) and kickball (teams of six) during lunch recess. Students may only play one sport (spikeball, cornhole, kickball) in the competition; suggested donation of $5. 
• T-Shirts for Sale: Purchase a Thayer T-shirt or long sleeve designed by the eight graders. Prices vary.

Eighth graders remind the Thayer community that giving or participating is not mandatory for students, but the class appreciates any and all support.

Change to Middle School Dismissal Pickup
Effective April 15, the 5th grade class began utilizing the Middle School parking lot for after-school pickup five days per week. This process has been used for Friday pickup to alleviate some of the congestion at dismissal and has worked so well that it will now be used for all in-school days. Buses have been delayed from entering the Middle School loop until 3:20 p.m. to accommodate for this change.

If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to Teresa Tenney in the Middle School Office.

Virtual “Coffee with Galen" is April 28
All Middle School parents and guardians are invited to a virtual coffee Wednesday, April 28, at 8:30 a.m. Topics include: spring events & end-of-year activities; there will also exam study tips with MS Hale Learning Center Director Kerri Brosnan P ‘ 25, ‘28. The Zoom link will be shared the day before the call.

Fully Remote Day is April 28
The Middle School will be fully remote on Wednesday, April 28.  

Snack and Study: Organization and Time Management
The MS Hale Learning Center will hold its next virtual Snack & Study session Wednesday, April 28, at 4 p.m. This session is part of a series preparing 7th and 8th graders for final exams. The topic will be "Organization and Time Management." Gathering and organizing class materials and planning a study schedule to prepare for year-end tests is an essential piece of the process. The task of preparing and studying for exams can be overwhelming for many students. This session will break down the task into manageable pieces so that students feel in control and empowered. They will leave the session with a study calendar so they can avoid last-minute panic and "cramming". Please email Maryann Shafter to reserve a spot and receive the Zoom link. Because April 28 is a remote day, the session will begin at 4 p.m.  To see the list of remaining Snack & Study sessions —including a description, date, and time —please click here. 

Info for Cast of Showstoppers
Please click here for important rehearsal dates for the upcoming Middle School production of Showstoppers. Please click here for a costume list. 

COVID-19 Test Dashboard 
Please click this link to view a table of data about Thayer’s weekly COVID-19 testing and results for 2021. The COVID-19 testing results show a very low positivity rate, and even with some additional cases reported by families, the case counts relative to approximately 900 people (students, faculty, staff, and the current season’s coaches) remain very low. In support of school protocols, we continue to strongly advise safe practices outside of school (e.g., no sleepovers and no gatherings without masks and maximal distancing) to prevent any community-acquired COVID-19 cases

Updated quarantine policy for close contacts to a positive COVID-19 case
Effective Monday, April 26
When identified as a close contact to someone who has tested positive for COVID-19, the individual must strictly quarantine for seven days. They can be released from quarantine to return to on-campus classes on Day 8 if they:

• have received a negative COVID-19 PCR or rapid molecular test**** taken on Day 5 or later, AND
• have not experienced any symptoms up to that point.

The individual must continue to actively monitor themselves for symptoms through Day 14.
Massachusetts Guidelines about Quarantine
****Please note that a rapid antigen test is not accepted by Thayer to release a close contact from quarantine. A negative PCR or rapid molecular test is required.

Exceptions to the need to quarantine are those who:

• are fully vaccinated, which is two weeks past the vaccine series (after 2nd shot of Moderna or Pfizer, or after 1 shot of Johnson & Johnson).
• have tested positive for COVID-19 within the previous 90 days.

Weekly COVID-19 Testing
Week of April 26, COVID-19 testing is scheduled in Memorial Gym as follows:

• Monday, April 26, 2:15 to 5 p.m, individual COVID-19 PCR testing for Upper School athletes as directed by the Athletics Department,
• Tuesday, April 27, 2 to 4 p.m., individual COVID-19 PCR testing for Middle School athletes as directed by John Reid, MS Athletics Director, and for other students as directed by the nurses.
• Thursday, April 29, 10 am to 1 p.m., Middle School Pool Testing Trial of 100 individuals (see * below).

Week of May 3 through the conclusion of the school year, pool testing of all students, staff, and faculty. Pooled sample collections will take place each Monday at the Upper School and each Tuesday at the Middle School, starting May 3 and May 4.

*As has been relayed by Mr. Koskores in previous communications, Thayer will be transitioning the weekly COVID-19 testing from individual PCR testing for a partial number of the on-campus community to testing everyone on campus via pooled sample testing (which will be referenced as “pooled testing”). 

“Pooling samples involves mixing several samples together in a "batch" or pooled sample, then testing the pooled sample with a diagnostic test. This approach increases the number of individuals that can be tested using the same amount of resources. This method of pooling samples works well when there is a low prevalence of cases, meaning more negative results are expected than positive results.” Pooled Testing Information by FDA

A few other important notations:

• Providing a weekly negative COVID-19 PCR test will be required to be on campus, either by participating in the weekly pooled testing conducted at Thayer or by providing a report of a negative PCR test from an outside company. 
• The exceptions for this requirement are:
  • Anyone who has tested positive for COVID-19 in the past 90 days is exempt from the required weekly testing;
  • Those who are fully vaccinated are encouraged to participate in the weekly testing program but are not required to do so.

As always, if you have non-urgent questions, please send an email to nurse@thayer.org. Feel free to call our office about more urgent matters at 781-664-2299.

Click on the book or article titles for the book review or full article.

• Upper School History Faculty Karen Jersild is reading The Secrets We Kept by Lara Prescott.
• Upper School Foreign Language Faculty Callie Smith is reading Undocumented by Dan-el Padilla Peralta.