To the editor:

My name is Kelly McKenney Golden, and I am a licensed mental health counselor and have been working in public schools for the past 20 years. I have been actively working in schools during the pandemic and am well-versed in the Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH) guidelines pertaining to schools as well as the K-12 playbook informing schools of policies and procedures as the pandemic continues. 

My son, age 5, is enrolled in kindergarten this school year at Melville Elementary School in Portsmouth. As of this past Friday, Oct. 1, 2021, my son's entire kindergarten class has been quarantined, though this does not follow either RIDOH or the K-12 playbook's guidelines. RIDOH guidelines and the K-12 playbook do not speak to or advise the quarantining of entire classrooms at this stage of the pandemic. In-school transmission has been proven to be null, and in cases of positive cases being uncovered at school, contact tracing has found that the origin of the virus was with a family member, not a school contact.

I want to call attention to the fact that Portsmouth public schools chooses to make arbitrary and inconsistent decisions that are not in the best interest of our students. When I wrote an e-mail asking for more information, I was greeted with a response that in simple terms stated that Portsmouth public schools can basically do whatever they want though it was put in the guise of “Schools have discretion to implement more stringent policies” and “Schools can determine the risk benefit assessment that is best for their school community” from the K-12 playbook. 

I believe the reactive response of Portsmouth public schools is not warranted at this stage of the pandemic and is a detriment to our students and families. While there is no evidence that in-school transmission of COVID-19 is something that we need to be vigilant in combatting, what there has been documented evidence of is the academic lag that our students are experiencing in not being able to attend school for in-person learning, not to mention the social emotional impact of this increased and prolonged forced isolation. 

I believe the unwarranted reactiveness of the Portsmouth School Department only instills fear and anxiety in families who have already endured so much over the past almost two years. It is my hope that by voicing this concern and highlighting that Portsmouth public schools is choosing to make their own arbitrary policies, that more families will educate themselves and begin to actively question what in reality is the best choice for their students.

I will be speaking at the Portsmouth School Committee on Thursday, Oct. 14, at 7 p.m.

Kelly McKenney Golden

141 Locust Ave.

Portsmouth