Page 4 THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, JULY 30, 2021 A spike in COVID-19 cases continues J Nineteen newly confirmed COVID-19 cases reported in town over the past week, according to town manager By Mark E. Vogler ust three weeks after reporting no newly confirmed cases of COVID-19, 19 new cases were reported in Saugus over the past week, according to Town Manager Scott C. Crabtree. “As of July 29, 2021, Saugus has had 4250 confirmed cases ASKS | FROM PAGE 3 grandmother met. And he actually got sick when he was helping to bring in one of my family members through Ellis Island. So, my grandmother came back with my father and his sister and raised them and became a teacher. And so, she’s really my inspiration. Q: That’s what I was going to ask, What was your inspiration to get into the education field? A: It was absolutely my grandmother. Her name was Elizabeth Driscoll McMahon, and she was a career educator and she developed an expertise in early literaof COVID-19 and 74 confirmed deaths since 03/01/2020,” Crabtree wrote in an email to The Saugus Advocate. The newly confirmed COVID-19 cases have been steadily climbing each week, from zero to four to 15 and 19 this week – for a total of 38 so far this month. There were only eight newly confirmed cy. She is my inspiration. In fact, I can share a photo with you. She was a really incredible person, so she is my inspiration for coming into the field. And what she said to me really made a profound impact on me in my early years: “The wonderful thing about teaching is that your product is human, and so you never know the impact that you are going to have on a child and a child’s life. And you may not know for many years to come.” And that’s why I look at Saugus as being such an important place. It’s about generations of children who go through Saugus, and our educators who work COVID19 cases reported last month, a huge drop from the 37 cases reported in June of last year, town Public Health Nurse Teresa Riley-Singh told the Board of Health last week. With three days remaining in this month, the total number of COVID-19 cases is nearly five times what it was last month. Meanwhile, an analysis of so hard every day may or may not know the impact that they have – our coaches and all of our sports staff. That’s why we have such an awesome job. Q: What’s the student enrollment for the coming year? A: I’d have to check. We’ve been around 2,700, but I don’t know the exact number right now. Q: So, you multiply that times the years you are here and that’s how many children you will have an effect on. A: Yes. I was really fortunate – prior to this I worked for Denver Public Schools, and we had 91,000 kids. And I looked at it as – EDUCATOR WITH A TRACK RECORD: New Saugus Public Schools Superintendent Erin McMahon is completing her first month on the job. She comes to Saugus with a record of success in improving student achievement in school administrative positions she’s held in Denver, Co.; New York City; and Washington, D.C.; and she’s confident she can do the same in Saugus. (Saugus Advocate photo by Mark E. Vogler) every single student, every single one of the 91,000, I was responsible for – and I have that same personal view. Q: Anybody else in your family an educator? A: No. My grandmother was the only one. Q: So your family and your career, you sort of kept them apart. A: Right. It’s neither here nor there. I work for the School Committee in the Town of Saugus. Q: I went on the Internet and I noticed you are active in your church or have been. A: Yes. I’m really fortunate to have been raised Catholic. It’s a faith that’s quite beautiful. And we have two Catholic churches here in Saugus. I was excited to get to visit those. Q: What is the biggest challenge as you look to the new year in Saugus? A: It’s hard to put a finger on one challenge. I would say it’s really understanding how we as a community build our intentional culture as we enter the three new buildings. And we will really build a culture of excellence, starting from Day One: that we are focused on acceleration rather than remediation, and we really think about each child and see where they are and work to meet them there. So, I think it’s really our focus on how we as adults are shaping our culture to lift up students. Q: What are the major initiatives and new programs that people can expect in September? A: That’s a good question. I think what’s most important is that we have in-person learning. I think that’s our focus, other than there’s a new program per se. Q: Are you going to be doing masks in the schools? That seems to be the trend. A: You know, that’s a good question, and I would have to wait on that until I have consultation with the commissioner and the Massachusetts Department of Education. We wear them [masks] in the K-12 setting. They’re required. As you know, it is recommended for children two and up, regardless of vaccination. But the commisASKS | SEE PAGE 10 last week’s cases shows that the residents being diagnosed with COVID-19 are getting younger. “We are seeing fewer cases in the 60s and over,” Saugus Health Department Director John Fralick said in an interview this week. “We’re seeing less seniors getting COVID-19.” An analysis of 15 cases over the period of July 17 through July 23 showed that all were under age 60, according to figures released by Fralick. Eight were in the 40 to 59 category; two were in the 24 to 29 category; two were in the 17 to 23 category; two were in the 11 to 16 category; and two were in the 0 to 10 category.
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