Thanksgiving

Mass. School District Requires Parents to Adhere to COVID Restrictions Over Thanksgiving

Families of students in Littleton, Massachusetts, will need to sign forms agreeing to state safety guidelines with coronavirus cases spiking ahead of Thanksgiving

NBC Universal, Inc.

The school committee in Littleton, Massachusetts, wants families with kids to promise to adhere to COVID-19 restrictions over Thanksgiving.

Students whose families refuse to sign a form agreeing to state safety guidelines will not be allowed back in school for 14 days after the break or until a negative coronavirus test is provided.

Mike Fontanella, the chair of the committee, says there has been a lot of input from parents on decisions related to the pandemic this year.

"I thought there would be some people who would want to put their two cents worth in, but we really didn't get much feedback on it one way or another," he said.

People who spoke with NBC10 Boston understand why the committee is doing this.

"As a teacher, it makes perfect sense to me," said Christina, who did not want to give her last name. "It's not perfect. It's not as far as I'd like to see it go, honestly, but I think it's better than nothing."

Debbie Mozzicato thinks it's reasonable.

"I don't think it's unfair to ask people to do this, to sign a pledge," she said. "I think it's respectful of each other, our family members, our neighbors."

But she's a little skeptical.

"I don't know if people would truthfully stick to a pledge that they've signed," she said.

That is the big question — will people be honest?

Laura Short doesn't think so.

"I feel like it would make for too much room for dishonesty for everybody, really," she said. "Some people will be truthful about it, but you don't really know for sure. The amount people want to be with their families … I think they'll do that and hide away from it, which is unfortunate."

Schools have not proven to be super-spreaders in Massachusetts, and this is Littleton's effort to see that doesn't change after Thanksgiving.

Contact Us