Westport Cumulative COVID-19 Cases Up 19; No Deaths; State Positivity Rate 2.68%
The Westport-Weston Health District reports that Westport has added 19 positive or probable COVID-19 cases, and has added 0 deaths.
Westport total positive or probable cases: 1,754 cases. Westport total COVID-19 Deaths: 31 deaths. This includes data from this past Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.
State Daily Test Positivity: 2.68%
Westport Police Department and DEA Announce Prescription Drug Take Back Day April 24th
Press ReleaseOn Saturday, April 24, 2021, from 10:00am to 2:00pm, the Westport Police Department will again partner with the United States Drug Enforcement Administration for National Prescription Drug Take Back Day. The event will be held at the Westport Center for Senior Activities located at 21 Imperial Avenue.
The National Prescription Drug Take Back Day addresses a crucial public safety and public health issue. According to the 2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 9.7 million people misused prescription pain relievers, 4.9 million people misused prescription stimulants, and 5.9 million people misused prescription tranquilizers or sedatives. The study shows that a majority of abused prescription drugs were obtained from family and friends, often from the home medicine cabinet. The DEA’s Take Back Day events provide an opportunity for Americans to prevent drug addiction and overdose deaths.
Please note that collection sites cannot accept liquids, needles or sharps, only pills or patches. The service is free and anonymous, no questions asked. Additionally, please see the attached link in regards to disposal of vape pens: https://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/drug_disposal/takeback/vaping_disposal.pdf
Vape pens where the batteries can be removed, can be disposed of at the drug take back. Vape pens where batteries cannot be removed will NOT be accepted at the drug take back.
Last fall Americans turned in nearly 492.7 tons of prescription drugs at 4587 sites operated by the DEA and its state and local law enforcement partners. Please join the Westport Police Department in doing our part to help continue the success of this vital initiative.
For those seeking more information about the disposal of prescription drugs or about the April 24th Take Back Day event, visit https://takebackday.dea.gov/
Residents are also reminded that a year-round collection bin is located in the lobby of Westport police headquarters, where prescription drugs can be properly disposed of at any time rather than waiting for designated collection dates.
Superintendent: 15 New COVID-19 Cases in District, 9 at Staples
Press ReleaseDear Westport Families and Staff,
In our efforts to remain transparent with reports of positive Covid-19 cases associated with our schools, we will continue to provide these updates as information is confirmed. As of the time I am writing to you this morning, we have 15 newly confirmed cases of COVID-19 from the vacation week. The reports came from the following schools:
Coleytown Elementary School - 1
Greens Farms Elementary School - 1
Kings Highway Elementary School - 1
Saugatuck Elementary School - 1
Bedford Middle School - 2
Staples High School - 9
As a reminder, families are asked to report positive COVID-19 cases of students using our reporting voicemail or email regardless of whether the students are in remote or hybrid models of instruction. Please follow this link for more information on reporting.
Additionally, we want to remind families that students with pending Covid-19 tests should not return to school until receiving negative results. This approach is critical in helping us continue minimizing the potential for transmission in our schools.
Respectfully,
Thomas Scarice
Superintendent of Schools
Staples High School Valedictorian, Salutatorian Announced
Konur Nordberg, Staples High School Valedictorian for the Class of 2021Valedictorian: Konur Nordberg, Duke University
Salutatorian: Hannah Even, Princeton University
Konur Nordberg and Hannah Even call themselves “STEM students.” They’re intrigued by math and science courses like physics and calculus. But both also loved some of their humanities courses.
They did well in whatever they took – and they took some of Staples High School’s most rigorous courses. They earned the two highest grade point averages at the academically demanding school. Konur is valedictorian, and Hannah salutatorian. Both will deliver speeches during graduation ceremonies in June.
The pair are also products of the Westport Public Schools. Konur attended Saugatuck Elementary and Bedford Middle Schools. He was an avid soccer and basketball player while younger. At Staples he played soccer and ran track for three years, and raced on the ski team for two.
He was also a member of the school’s Service League of Boys. He participated in a variety of community projects, including clean-up efforts, soup kitchens and fundraising. “I met a lot of grateful people,” Konur says. “And doing it with friends made it special.”
STEM-oriented classes like Advanced Placement Chemistry taught by Dominick Messina, and Advanced Computer Science with Dr. Nick Morgan, were particularly enjoyable and challenging. “I’m a very logical person. Those are fields I may want to go into. It was fascinating to see how many applications there are for them.”
But United States History with Nell-Ayn Lynch also piqued his interest. In fact, he says, the entire Staples environment – which “shows you how to be academically rigorous, with so many amazing courses, but offers so many clubs and sports too” – played a role in his success.
Hannah Even, Salutatorian of Staples High School’s Class of 2021 COVID disrupted that environment, beginning last spring. Sports had always provided a balance to Konur’s school day, and helped him manage his time. Instead he ran on his own, and adjusted to distance learning. “I adapted,” he says simply. “Teachers were pretty helpful.”
Konur did not set out to become valedictorian. In fact, “as a freshman I didn’t even know what that was.” But from a young age his parents had instilled in him a desire to try hard in whatever he did.
“You can’t obsess about every grade and test,” he notes. “That can drive you crazy.” It’s much better to “live a balanced life, in and out of school. I was lucky to be able to figure out that balance.”
He recognizes that being Staples High School’s valedictorian is an enormous honor, and credits his teachers for their support and positive influence.
He is not sure what he’ll talk about when he delivers his address. However, Konur says, he remembers writing letters “to our future selves” on the last day of fifth and seventh grades. They are returned to seniors before graduation. As he and the Class of 2021 look forward, he may well use those letters as a way to reflect on how far he’s come.
This fall, Konur heads to Duke University.
Hannah, the salutatorian, applied her STEM skills in two types of competitions. At Long Lots Elementary School she participated in Math Olympiad; at Bedford Middle School she captained her Science Olympiad team to the national competition.
“That introduced me to engineering,” she recalls. “I saw how physics overlapped between science and math.” She also realized that math relates to “real life” – particularly when her team built a hovercraft (and won first place at the state meet).
Hannah continued Science Olympiad at Staples, and was again captain. She is vice president of the Science National Honor Society, and a member of its math counterpart. She is also on the math team (captain), works on the STEM Journal, and tutors with Top Hat.
“It all makes sense to me,” she says of science and math. “There are so many creative paths to get to a fundamental conclusion.”
Hannah’s favorite courses include Advanced Placement Chemistry with Mr. Messina, (Konur is a classmate), Advanced Placement Physics with David Scrofani, Pre-Calculus with Rasha Tarek, Advanced Placement Language with Mary Fulco – and Advanced Placement Government with Suzanne Kammerman
“That was not in my wheelhouse,” she admits. “But it became one my favorite classes. It was cool to take it in a year when there was so much going on politically.”
Distance learning during the pandemic took some of the stress off – with fewer extracurricular opportunities, she could spend more time on schoolwork and college applications – but Hannah missed debating ideas face-to-face with teachers and students.
Earning salutatorian honors “just happened,” Hannah says. “It was important to me that I took classes I liked. But of course I wanted to do well in them. This is really a great honor. There are so many good students at Staples. It’s nice to know I’ve made it through, and my work paid off.”
Her advice to younger students: “There’s a lot of pressure to take AP classes, just for the credit. But if you don’t like the subject, you won’t do well. Take classes you have a passion for. You’ll enjoy them more. You’ll even enjoy studying for the tests.”
Hannah plans to study engineering at Princeton University.