No School Field Trips Without Low's OK

In an effort to prevent the spread of the H1N1 virus, or swine flu, in the schools, the Ridgefield Public School system instituted a policy that all field trips must be approved individually by superintendent Deborah Low.

"Ms. Low will be reviewing all field trip requests and deciding whether or not they will go on a case by case basis," parents were informed in a letter distributed via PTA e-blasts from both middle schools. "Trips that involve long bus rides, particularly in 'coach buses' with large numbers of students, will likely be canceled."

Major field trips to be scrapped this week were the middle school trips to Ellis Island, which were to be next week for Scotts Ridge and Nov. 19 for East Ridge, as well as a January overnight ski trip for eighth graders.

"There are still field trips," East Ridge principal Marty Fiedler said. "But the concern is that, when you put students on a bus for an hour or more in close proximity to one another and if someone has the H1N1 virus, it's going to spread quickly throughout." As of Friday afternoon, Fiedler said, he only received two feedback e-mails on the cancellations, one for and one against the decision. Scotts Ridge principal Marie Doyon did not respond to a request for comment on Friday.

The idea, the e-blast letter said, is to use "social distancing" to avoid spreading swine flu. Numbers posted on the school district Web site show that about 3.5 percent of students across the district were absent on Monday and Tuesday of this week, but there is no way to quantify how many of those absences were due to flu despite requests from school nurses to report whether absenteeism was caused by flu-like symptoms.

The district central office held a meeting on Friday afternoon, partly to discuss the district's approach to H1N1 management.

A letter to families penned by Low's office on Friday after that meeting said that absentee rates in the schools are not higher than in other years, but that at the elementary schools increasing numbers of the absences are due to flu-like symptoms. Social distancing, the letter said, is an attempt to prevent absentee rates from rising high enough to make closing a school for five to seven days a viable option as has happened in other towns in the state.

"As we look forward to November and beyond, we will examine 'social distancing' in relation to other situations such as dances and assemblies," the letter said.

Student illness does seem to be putting a damper on some high school happenings. At a dress rehearsal for the high school drama production of "Noises Off" on Thursday evening, five student crew members were out sick and fellow cast and crew were scrambling to complete their tasks between acts.

But high school athletic director Carl Charles said Friday that he has not heard of flu affecting sports attendance this season.

"I just count my lucky stars that I'm not hearing it yet," Charles said.