Guild of St. Agnes to help Worcester crisis management

By Gina Curini | Special to the CFP

On Friday, March 13, as the Worcester Public Schools announced that the schools would be closing for two weeks, daycare facilities also had to face a similar decision. The Guild of St. Agnes Early Education and Child Care decided a close it facilities throughout the Diocese of Worcester. But then they offered help to the city of Worcester.
Edward P. Madaus, the executive director of the Guild of St. Agnes, said that the number one reason that they chose to close was out of concern for the health of their educators. Another reason was the need for many teachers to remain home to care for their own children.
Over the weekend, everyone that used the Guild’s services was called, and, to Mr. Madaus’ knowledge, not one of the 1,800 children they serve, nor the additional 500 in the care of family child care providers, arrived at Guild sites on Monday.
The Guild was invited by City Manager Edward M. Augustus Jr. to the Worcester Management Crisis meeting on Friday night. Early Saturday morning the concern arose about a need for child care for the families of first responders and medical personnel.
A plan is in the process of implementation. Sharon Woodbury, director of human resources for the Guild, said that the Guild will assist and, as early as Friday, children will be coming for supervision and care. They are currently “just waiting on the numbers [of children].”
On Monday, when made aware of the need for child care for the families of the first responders and medical staff, 51 of the Guild’s 350 employees volunteered to continue to work.
According to Guild administrators there are going to be some extraordinary measures put in place. The normal adult/child ratios will “perhaps be cut almost in half, but we are still waiting for guidance from the Worcester Public School Department,” administrators said. Currently in pre-K the ratio 10:1 and for school age children it is 13:1.
The Guild of St. Agnes said it is closely working with the Worcester Crisis Management authorities. They are assisting in keeping the public informed with up-to-date information. On their Facebook page, at www.facebook.com/GuildOfStAgnes/, you will find notifications, public service announcements, and suggestions for indoor educational children’s activities. For example, there are free meal notifications, Worcester Public Schools information, and links to educational sites, virtual state park tours or zoo webcams, even a website with actors reading stories for children.
The Guild of St. Agnes is following in its forebears’ footsteps. Begun in 1913, it became an orphanage in 1918 when the influenza pandemic caused the deaths of many adults of child-bearing age. Once operated by the Church, in the 1970s the Guild became an independent nonprofit organization, according to information on its website.