Hello,

I hope all of you are doing well and enjoying the summer.

The first day of school for students, Monday, August 30th, is rapidly approaching. As that day gets closer, my excitement about the new school year and everyone being back in the building grows. I imagine everyone will be wearing big smiles underneath their masks. 

As exciting as it will be to have everyone back in the building, it does also make me a little nervous. But, the precautions we’re taking, the current Covid numbers being low, and the number of fully vaccinated people in our area being high, do help to ease my mind. With that being said, we will still need to work together to keep all of us as safe as possible. These are a few of the safety precautions we will be taking at school: 

• Everyone, except people who are medically exempt, will be wearing a mask indoors
• Whenever possible we will keep students at least 3 feet apart 
• Air purifiers and hand sanitizer are still in every classroom
• Our 4 x 4 block schedule will cut down on the number of people students will be spending a significant amount of time with indoors 
• Students will be eating lunches outside as much as possible 

One of the main reasons we made it through the spring with students in the building and no major Covid outbreaks, was due to the level of cooperation from our students and their families. With your continued support, we’re hoping to keep that momentum going. If there are any Covid cases in school, our local Department of Public Health will do a thorough job of contact tracing to minimize the spread.  

Other ways we are getting ready for school to start is to make sure that students feel welcome and prepared. This is a reminder that on August 24th from 8am-4pm, 9th and 10th Graders can pick up their school-issued Chromebook and schedule. They will also be able to take a tour of the school from 9am-12pm on August 24th. Please fill out the form to have your student added to the tour list. Students will also be given tours on the first day of school with their Advisory. 

The tours will be given by our 11th & 12th graders. All 11th and 12th graders not giving tours should come to the high school on August 25th anytime between 8am-4pm to get their Chromebook, schedule, and an unofficial copy of their transcript.  

We will be sending this information directly to students as well. Please email arhsoffice@arps.org or call 413-362-1700 with questions. Thanks and take care.

Talib Sadiq

Principal