Information for Schools Regarding Browntail Moth Infestations

The following information comes from the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry.

Schools are critical spaces to recognize and respond to browntail moth (BTM) infestations, to avoid impacts to students and staff. While long-lasting tree defoliation and branch dieback are concerns, impacts to the health of students and staff are the most pressing concerns around schools. The microscopic, toxic hairs of BTM can cause trouble breathing and skin irritation similar to poison ivy, lasting from a few hours to up to several weeks. Some people say they experience itching with fewer than ten webs per tree or shrub; others say they have no symptoms from heavier infestations around their yards. In 2021, Maine Forest Service (MFS) surveys uncovered populations of this insect in every Maine county except York, where it is also likely to be found.

In areas where BTM is not managed, exposures to the toxic hairs peak from late-May through July but are possible throughout the year. You can take actions right now, from February to the end of March, to reduce impacts at the end of the school year along with any summer use of the school grounds. There is only a short window of time to complete these actions. Please consider speaking with your facilities manager, custodians, and staff now to create an action plan.

For more information and support on how to respond to potential browntail moth infestations view the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry latest bulletin.

For further information and for answers to your questions:

Call 211 or 1-877-463-6207
Text your ZIP code to 898-211

Maine DOE Welcomes Health Care Professionals Serving on School Public Health Response Team

The Maine Department of Education (DOE) has welcomed a team of health care professionals as part of the Maine Department of Education School Public Health Response Team. The School Public Health Response Team has been in the making since the start of the school year and serves as the point of contact that schools reach out to for the most current information and resources related to COVID-19. The newer members of the School Public Health Response Team join School Nurse Consultant, Emily Poland and School Public Health Response Coordinator, Nancy Dube who have been coordinating COVID-19 health response efforts between the Maine Department of Education and the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention and Maine schools during the pandemic.

Each region has been assigned a School Public Health Liaison from the team whose primary goal is to assist schools in the region with all coordination, planning, questions, and collaboration related to COVID-19. More specifically the School Public Health Liaisons will serve as a resource for pooled testing questions, including registration, and support, BinaxNOW testing follow-up testing procedures, and connecting with health partners to set up COVID-19 vaccine clinics for age appropriate students and staff. In addition, the liaison can work with school staff through positive COVID-19 case questions.

Sandra (Sandy) Lauzier
School Public Health Regional Liaison

Sandy has lived in Saco most of her life. She has been a Registered Nurse (RN) for 49 years and recently retired after 38 years serving as a school nurse where she was a school district team leader and advocated tirelessly for a better student to nurse ratio. Outside of work, family time is the most important to Sandy. She enjoys a tradition of family dinner night every week with her kids and grandchildren. She also likes to spend time with her husband walking and biking and visiting their favorite places.

Martha Israel, MEd RN NBCSN
School Public Health Regional Liaison

Martha began her school nursing career in 1988 at Student Health Services at the University of Southern Maine (USM). She moved to Vermont in 1995 and worked as a school nurse for 24 years. Martha has also worked part time as a psychiatric nurse since 1986 when she worked at AMHI. She recently moved back to Maine to be closer to family. In her free time she is working on restoring the gardens in her new home and spending as much time as she can exploring the coastal coves with her dog Greta.

Johanna Peterson, BSN
School Public Health Specialist

Johanna lives in the Belfast area and is happy to be starting her new role on the Maine Department of Education’s School Public Health Team! She joined the Department after doing school close contact tracing last year. In the past she has worked in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), as a school nurse, and in healthcare information technology. In her spare time, she keeps busy on her mini farm and chasing her children around for their various activities.

Cristie Barone
School Public Health Specialist

Originally from Florida, Cristie has also lived in New York and Massachusetts but considers New Gloucester, Maine her home. She has worked as a school nurse for most of her career and feels very privileged to be working with the School Public Health Response Team at the Maine Department of Education. Cristie enjoys playing the piano and talking with friends. Her first choice for any free time is to spend it with family, whether it is participating in water and outdoor activities, playing cards, going out to eat, riding the motorcycle with her husband, or watching a movie.

Elaine Ouellette
School Public Health Regional Liaison

Elaine is from Van Buren in Aroostook County and has lived in that area most of her life. She is now a snow bird and lives in Summerfield, Florida in the winter, enjoying the warm Florida sunshine during Maine’s cold winter months. Before taking this position, Elaine was retired after serving as a School Nurse for nearly 25 years in Van Buren and working part time as a physician assistant for a local medical provider.  She has worked in the Emergency Room, Operating Room, Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and on the Medical/ Surgical Floor in her local hospitals, and worked in a local Family Practice Office seeing patients for nearly 20 years. In her spare time, she is a quilter and a crafter and enjoys gardening, baking, cardmaking, oil and acrylic painting, and scrapbooking.

Susan Accardi, RN
School Public Health Regional Liaison

Susan is a retired school nurse having worked for the Windham Raymond School Department for 25 plus years. She has lived in Raymond for 40 years, raised her two children there, and now her grandson is attending Raymond Elementary school as well. Up until taking the position with the Maine Department of Education she served the school as a substitute nurse. Susan is grateful to join this incredible team of nurses to help fellow school nurses who are out in the field doing incredible work.

Beckie Geagan
School Public Health Regional Liaison

Beckie been a nurse for many years, serving most recently as a member of the Maine DOE Contact Tracing Team, and prior to that as the School Nurse at MCI (Maine Central Institute) in Pittsfield for 18 years. A native of New York City, Beckie has lived in Maine for 24 years (thanks to her husband Frank, who is a Mainer through and through) and prides herself on having two beautiful and amazing states she can call home. Beckie is so glad to be able to help the school nurses of Maine as they work ceaselessly to take care of school children, schools, and families.

Debra St. Amand
School Public Health Administrative Assistant

Debra was born and raised in Maine, calling Windsor her home for the past 30 plus years. She has provided administrative assistance and support to organizations in Augusta and surrounding areas, with the most recent being the State of Maine’s Department of Public Safety. Debra is looking forward to supporting this amazing team of nurses. In her spare time, she enjoys outdoor activities and spending time with her husband, children, and grandchildren.

Nancy J. Cooley, FNP-BC, MSN
School Public Health Specialist

Nancy lives in Vassalboro with her husband and four dogs. She has a master’s in parent child health nursing and nursing education. Nancy spent many years on the faculty of the nursing education program at the University of Maine at Augusta and as the director of the program. She is a Family Nurse practitioner and has worked in family practice, which she continues on a per diem basis. Her nursing career also included home health nursing, school nursing, and participating on medical trips to the Dominican Republic. She came to the DOE as a contract tracer last year, moved to the CDC as a Covid Investigator, and has returned to the DOE to be part of the School Public Health Response Team. She is glad to work with this team and support the nurses in our schools. She enjoys quilting, knitting, hiking, and kayaking, as well as spending time with her husband, children, and grandchildren.

Fleur Vining, BSN/RN
School Public Health Regional Liaison

Fleur was born and raised in Maine, and also spent many years in Northwestern Connecticut, before returning to Maine. She has worked as a school nurse for most of her career. She joined the Maine DOE contact tracing team in the fall of 2020, before assuming her role of regional liaison. Fleur enjoys spending time at her lake house with her husband and two wonderful children.

Lori Huot, BSN
School Public Health Regional Liaison

Lori was born in Maine and though she traveled with her husband, they both found that Maine is where they want to be, with family. Lori’s 14 years of nursing experience has been diverse, ranging from surgical nursing, ambulatory care, and hematology/oncology. For the last 6 years she has been in her most prized role, school nursing. Lori is excited to join the team, hoping to bring some aid and relief to the nurses working tirelessly for our communities. In her free time, she adores being a dedicated hockey mom for her two boys, practicing art, and spending time with family at the cottage on the lake.

Neeburbunn Lewis, RN/MSN
School Public Health Regional Liaison

Neeburbunn was born and raised in Maine. Prior to nursing, Neeburbunn earned her BS and MSN in Kinesiology. She spent several years working as a Wellness Coach, Personal Trainer and Group Exercise instructor. She spent many years as a specialized Pilates instructor. Her interest in science and health guided her into nursing and she has many years of experience as a cardiac nurse. She started out with cardiac rehab, then worked on a Cardiac/Telemetry unit and then became a Specialty RN in Electrophysiology. She enjoys educating patients and working on individual care plans that include exercise, diet, and health goals. Neeburbunn is engaged in an active lifestyle with her family. She enjoys all outside activities!

Lorimer (Elsa) Hemingway, RN
School Public Health Regional Liaison

Originally from Newton, Massachusetts, Elsa moved to Maine in 1999, attending New England Baptist School of Nursing and Emmanuel College and graduated with a BSN. She has been a nurse for 31 years with experience in pediatrics, geriatrics, plastic surgery, and phone triage nursing. Elsa really enjoys being part of an amazing team of nurses that are able to help other nurses, schools, staff, and everyone involved maneuver through this pandemic and be a support system for others.

Deadline Approaching to Submit School Lead Sampling

The following message comes from Maine Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Drinking Water Program.

The deadline for submitting schools’ lead water samples is May 31, 2022.

Maine schools should be working with their local water professionals or using the provided training materials to identify water sampling locations, collect water samples, coordinate with A&L Laboratory, report results, and follow up with plans/procedures/actions based on the sampling results. If you haven’t done so already, your school should begin this process immediately. Instructions and training videos can be found online at https://leadtestingmaineschools.com/.

Testing for lead follows a very specific process. Carefully read the instructions before taking your first sample. Each step must be followed carefully and in the correct order.

Instructions and training videos can be found online at https://leadtestingmaineschools.com/.
If you have any questions or wish to order sample bottles, call A&L Lab at (207) 784-5354 or email them at lead@granitestateanalytical.com.
Samples that are improperly taken or submitted will not be analyzed; this will be considered a failure to monitor, at which point the school will be out of compliance with State law.

For assistance or to order your sample bottles, contact A&L Lab Phone at (207) 784-5354 or email lead@granitestateanalytical.com.

Announcing Office Hours for Behavioral Threat Assessment and Safety Concerns through a LCSW Lens

Please stop by for an informal discussion about school-based behavioral threat assessment (BTA) as an approach to school violence prevention. If your school team currently utilizes a BTA process, we can help trouble-shoot any methodological issues. If your school does not implement this strategy, we can provide information on upcoming training opportunities.

Intended Audience

School-based Behavioral Threat Assessment Teams
School Administrators
School Mental Health Providers (Social Workers, School Counselors, School Psychologists)
School Resource Officers
Community-based Law Enforcement

Start Date: February 7, 2022

Weekly Event: Recurring on Mondays

Time: Each session will be from 9:00-10:00am

Host: Dr. Karen Barnes, Mental Health Threat Assessment Officer for the Maine Department of Education

Join Zoom Meeting: https://zoom.us/j/97767364924?pwd=TjdDb1NhZy9Yd29YOGl6YnloY01kZz09

Feb 7, 2022 09:00 AM
Feb 14, 2022 09:00 AM
Feb 21, 2022 09:00 AM
Feb 28, 2022 09:00 AM
Mar 7, 2022 09:00 AM
Mar 14, 2022 09:00 AM
Mar 21, 2022 09:00 AM
Mar 28, 2022 09:00 AM
Apr 4, 2022 09:00 AM
Apr 11, 2022 09:00 AM
Apr 18, 2022 09:00 AM
Apr 25, 2022 09:00 AM
May 2, 2022 09:00 AM
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May 16, 2022 09:00 AM
May 23, 2022 09:00 AM
May 30, 2022 09:00 AM
Jun 6, 2022 09:00 AM
Jun 13, 2022 09:00 AM

More Information: For more information, please contact karen.a.barnes@maine.gov.

Teacher’s Creative Lessons on Food Insecurity Lead to Agriculture Award

Image: Manchester School Principal Danielle Donnini (left) and Fourth Grade Teacher/Awardee, Stacey Sanborn (right).

Stacey Sanborn, a fourth-grade teacher at Manchester School in Windham, has had a lifelong passion for gardening, especially as it alleviates food insecurity. She’s passed that love on to her students. It is for her innovative and creative approach that Sanborn has been awarded the Maine Agriculture In The Classroom Teacher of the Year (MAITC) Award for 2022.

The MAITC organization singled out Sanborn as a teacher who incorporates agricultural education in the classroom while at the same time, aligning it with core curriculum standards in science, math, social studies, and art. But perhaps just as importantly, Sanborn also introduces the importance of food insecurity and how it affects others’ lives.

Sanborn said incorporating gardening as part of the curriculum is important because Maine is a farming and aquaculture state, and students get to experience how much we are all a part of something bigger and how life is interrelated.

“Teaching students about agriculture helps them to develop the understanding of where our food comes from,” she said. “Students can see the importance of protecting a long Maine tradition of farming. It gets them out of the classroom and into the outdoors where the students are motivated learners with plenty of opportunity for fun and hands-on experiences.”

Her students are involved in all parts of the gardening process – from seed to harvest – and as they do so, they learn the traditional “reading, writing, and arithmetic.” Ways in which the conventional curriculum is a part of the gardening program include activities such as composting and soil experiments, pollination, keeping detailed records, data collection, and analysis to name just a few. Sanborn also points out that the social studies curriculum plays a strong role in Manchester School’s agriculture program.

“Gardening offers the guiding principles of being part of a community and being an active problem solver,” she said. “Doing something for others – even if it is something small – can have a big impact.”

Some of what the students grow, they get to sample, making some of their favorite recipes such as carrot muffins and “Amazing Carrot Soup.” What they can’t use in the cafeteria, they give to the RSU 14 nutrition program and the Windham Food Pantry. But the social responsibility the students learn in Sanborn’s class doesn’t end there.

“A former student-gardener who lived with food insecurity started their own garden at home and were so successful they were able to share produce with other families in need,” Sanborn said.

The Manchester School teacher says she feels very honored to be a part of this program and is grateful for the recognition from MAITC, however, she believes this is not her award alone.

“I must recognize a former colleague, Master Gardener, and a great mentor, Pam Lenz,” Sanborn said. “She has put so much effort into this program and is a major part of its success. Pam has helped me to achieve everything I’ve done, and it is a true partnership. She was instrumental in keeping the program going during the early days of the pandemic when schools were not meeting in person. She continued by starting seedlings, planting them in the garden, and creating gardening videos that were used as part of the remote learning experience. Pam is just as an important part of this award and I couldn’t have done it without her.”

Maine CDC Announces “Tick Wise” Poster Contest

Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Maine CDC) announces the 2022 Lyme Disease Awareness Month poster contest. This contest is for Maine students in grades K-8th to raise awareness of tickborne disease prevention. The 2022 Lyme Disease Awareness Month poster contest theme is “Tick Wise.”

Maine CDC encourages students to show how they are “Tick Wise.” Posters should illustrate at least one of the four approaches to personal prevention:

Use caution in tick-infested areas
Use an EPA-approved repellent
Wear protective clothing
Perform daily tick checks both by sight and by touch

Maine CDC will choose one winner each from grades K-1st, 2nd-3rd, 4th-5th, and 6th-8th. One winning poster will become Maine CDC’s 2022 Lyme Disease Awareness poster. Visit Maine CDC’s Lyme Disease Awareness Month website for more information. All posters must have a signed parent consent form.

Maine CDC created free downloadable school curriculum materials for students in 3rd – 8th grades to learn about ticks. Parents and teachers can also find tickborne disease posters, brochures, and other resources to download and order here. Explore these resources to become “Tick Wise” and prevent tick bites and tickborne disease.

For more information about tickborne diseases in Maine, visit www.maine.gov/lyme. For questions about the poster contest, contact megan.porter@maine.gov.

SOS to Spring – Social Emotional Intelligence Series for Maine’s Education Workforce

The Maine Department of Education’s Office of School and Student Supports invites ALL educators to SOS to Spring starting Feb. 3rd. Our SOS (Supporting our Staff) Platform was first introduced in November 2021, and if educators have not had the opportunity to explore its modules, we’re here to spring you forward and to reignite your own Adult SEL (Social Emotional Learning) skills. Educators are invited to chart their own course and to choose modules from the Adult, Social Emotional Intelligence site, OR our SEL Specialist Kellie Bailey has selected six high-leverage modules for interested participants. Those selected modules are as follows:

Feb. 3rd – I Wasn’t Trained for This!
Feb. 17th – Up Against the Clock Adult Wellness
March 3rd – De-Stress for Success
March 17th – What is Compassion Fatigue, and Do I Have It?
April 7th – A Mental Balancing Act
April 28th – Choosing to Be Grateful and Optimistic: A Lesson in Mindfulness

SEL Specialist Kellie Bailey will lead the six-part series – focused on reflection of the assigned module and applying the learning. Sessions will run from 4:00-4:45; HOWEVER, if you do not have time to watch the module ahead of time, log onto the zoom at 3:45pm for each session and watch it with our DOE team!

If educators choose to chart their own course, simply track your modules and send your documentation to us – kellie.bailey@maine.gov. We’re all in this together – make the time to tend to YOU!

Registration link

Participants do need to register on the SOS page if educators are not already registered for SEL4ME (takes two seconds!): SOS/SEL4ME Registration

For more information contact Kellie D. Bailey, Maine DOE Social Emotional Behavioral Learning Specialist at Kellie.Bailey@maine.gov.

FORUM: Emotional Well-Being During a Pandemic

Sponsored by Maine Community Action Partnership (MeCAP), this is a forum, open to all and at no charge, to connect and explore coping strategies.

Panelists:

Dr. Nirav Shah, Director of Maine Centers for disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Eric Eisele, E-COVID Project Director, Office of Behavioral Health, Maine Department for Health and Human Services (DHHS)
Arabella Pares, Trauma Informed Certificate Coordinator, University of New England (UNE)
Abigail Young, Junior at Ellsworth High School

Thursday, January 27, 6:00pm – 7:15pm

For more information, contact MeCAP: https://mecap.org

Maine Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD) Traffic Safety Programming

Students Against Destructive Decisions in Maine is offering educators across the state free access to mental health, prevention and mobility safety resources through a partnership with the Maine Bureau of Highway Safety.

Schools that become SADD chapters can not only implement any or all of SADD’s programming, they also can take advantage of SADD’s roster of local and national partners, as well as our engaging expert speakers.

SADD chapters offer unique opportunities to your students including attendance at national conferences and webinars; access to scholarship opportunities; new ways to connect with peers across the country; and some great things to put on their college applications.

Becoming a SADD chapter is completely free, and there are no requirements for participation. Your chapter can do as little or as much as works for your school. If you are interested in finding out more, please reach out to Christina Schechtman, Maine SADD State Coordinator, at cschechtman@sadd.org or visit linktr.ee/saddmaine.

Digital Forum on Prevention: Digital Ecosystems for Student Security, Safety, and Well-Being

Co-hosted with the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency’s (CISA) School Safety Task Force and the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Educational Technology (OET).

When:

Tuesday, January 25: 11:00 a.m. ET to 3:30 p.m. ET and;
Wednesday, January 26: 11:00 a.m. ET to 3:30 p.m. ET.

Where: Zoom

This forum will feature two days of online panels and workshops of experts, researchers, technology experts and practitioners. Attendees will learn about a public health-informed strategy to prevention, online safety, multidisciplinary approaches to student and educator well-being, and learn about solutions that support prevention, including how to improve digital literacy and critical thinking skills and cybersecurity resources to build resilience.

School administrators, educators, school safety stakeholders, prevention practitioners, including threat assessment and management professionals, state and local agencies, law enforcement, mental and behavioral health services, social services, technology companies, civil society organizations, cybersecurity experts, and all federal and international partners that have an interest and benefit in learning more about navigating student safety online are encouraged to register.

Full agenda and link to registration