Full Day of Learning on Wednesday, May 13 (except for New Liberty Innovation School)

Good Morning Salem Public School Families,

As you know, State Trooper Kevin Trainor, who lost his life in a wrong-way collision last week, will be laid to rest in Salem.  His services are scheduled for tomorrow at Saint James Church on 160 Federal St.  Kevin is a graduate of the Salem Public Schools, as are his four siblings.  He is one of our own and this tragedy is felt deeply by our school community and Salem more broadly.

The services for Officer Trainor are expected to draw thousands and several road closures are planned including, but not limited to, Bridge, Flint, and Federal streets among others in that area. We have been advised that sections of these roads will be impassable from 8:30 am. – 2:00 pm.  Yesterday, we spent significant time assessing the impact this will have on travel to and from our schools.  Arrival should be completed before the closures are in place, but due to the half day planned, dismissal will overlap with the services. In light of this, our choices are to cancel school entirely or to extend from a half to a full day for students.  We recognize that both options may pose challenges for staff and families.

In order to ensure the safe transport of students, we are making the following adjustments to tomorrow’s schedule: Wednesday, May 13, 2026 will be a full day for all Salem Public Schools except for New Liberty Innovation School (for the Carlton School this is not a change).  Arrival and dismissal times will be the same as a regular, full-day schedule and bus pick-up and drop-offs will also follow the full-day schedule.  This will move dismissal from occurring in the middle of the road closures to after the streets reopen. Please note, we do anticipate noticeably slower than normal commute times and share this information for your planning and consideration.

We understand that this last minute adjustment may have implications for families who were planning for a half day.  We deeply appreciate your cooperation and understanding, as there was limited lead time to plan and communicate changes given the circumstances.

We grieve with the Trainor family and will support them on this difficult day.  Thank you for joining us in this community effort.

Sincerely.

M. Kate Carbone, Interim Superintendent