As winter comes to an end and spring is on the horizon, illnesses continue to spread through the community.
Students, faculty, and teachers have been getting sick with seasonal illnesses such as the common cold, low-grade fevers, and the flu. They are also contracting illnesses such norovirus and pneumonia.
According to Ms. Krisann Miller, Ms. Pamela Sheridan, and Ms. Shari Johnson, nurses at the high school, there has been a steady rate of students coming into the nurse’s office at the high school for the past few months
“We saw a few kids every day. And then illness became very pervasive in the general population…we were bound to see it here,” said Miller.
“Talking to other nurses in the district, they had the same thing,” said Miller.
During the week of March 16, 2025, according to the Massachusetts Public Department of Health, 3.13% of the population reported the flu or flu-like illnesses.
The nurses suggest that if students or faculty members do not feel well enough for their average day, they should stay home.
The school nurses say there are general indicators for when to stay home: “fever (100 F), vomiting/diarrhea within the past 24 hours, diagnosed and placed on an antibiotic in the past 24 hours, not able to manage profuse nasal drainage, [and] persistent cough that kept your child awake all night.”
Waves of sickness come with attendance worries.
“It’s really complicated…you’re down for the count at home, but work is piling up,” said Miller.
There are many resources available to students, such as teachers, faculty members, and guidance counselors. They can help students manage both old and new academic work.
“If you’re sick, say, ‘I need to reschedule [the test]. Advocate for yourself that you need to reschedule the test, ” said Sheridan.
“We have really good mechanisms in place when collaborating with teachers to communicate the nature of the illnesses to whatever extent is appropriate. We also collaborate when determining what an appropriate path for makeup is,” said Mr. Collin Shattuck, Perrin House assistant principal.
In high school and across the state, students are required to earn 34 credits per year or 136 credits in total. Students who are ten or more minutes late to class will receive a cut. If eleven cuts are accumulated for a class in a quarter, they will not receive credit for that class. Moreover, their grade will not count either towards their final grade.
Overall, general guidelines consist of staying home when students don’t feel well and symptoms such as runny nose, coughing, and vomiting. This is to help prevent the spread of illnesses among the school and the public.
