Like the rest of the country, Coronavirus cases in Hingham are rapidly increasing, and safety is more important than ever, especially nearing the holidays. Plymouth River Elementary School went remote after a week of 4 positive COVID cases. Hingham Superintendent Paul Austin says, “This was done out of an abundance of caution, and will allow time for thorough contact tracing and additional deep cleaning of the PRS building.” As of now, PRS students and teachers will return to hybrid classrooms on Monday, December 14th. Hingham’s other schools are also taking precautions after last week, with five HHS cases and one at HMS. Not including staff, 62 students across the Hingham Public Schools were in quarantine last week, with 17 from PRS and 12 from HHS. 

Due to the town’s high infection rate, Mpathy, LLC set up a new COVID-19 testing site at 308 Cushing Street, with over 100 appointments scheduled for the opening day, December 10th. The goal of the facility is to allow more people access to convenient, accurate testing. To schedule a PCR Test, visit https://www.mpathy.org/schedule. 

Almost empty classrooms feel the virus’s presence, with more and more students opting to learn remotely. It is a challenge for teachers and students to include both Cohorts in-class lessons and discussions cohesively. Freshman Sarah Kelly reflects, “It feels weird to be in school and have most of the other students in class online.” 

HHS students are encouraging their peers to remain vigilant and help contain the virus. Hingham High Athletics has started a new social media campaign called #WhyIWearAMask, urging others to keep themselves, peers, and families safe. Also, the Student Council has decided to make a video with similar intentions. STUCO Vice President and Senior Carly Kennedy says, “I think that students are more apt to follow social distance guidelines when their peers are telling them to do so rather than adults. That is why I am making a video of many different students urging their classmates to follow protocols so that we can get everything back to normal as soon as possible!” 

Hingham’s status reflects many other towns across the country and globe. According to Johns Hopkins University, 70 million people have been infected worldwide, almost 16 million being in the U.S. The U.S. has set a new record with more than 3,000 deaths in one day, surpassing the death rate from the tragic 9-11 terrorist attacks. Despite these glaring statistics, with the vaccine headway, Ernie Tedeschi, a former economic advisor of the Obama Administration, says, “Far off in the distance, there is sunlight.”