Wish you could learn about the major happenings this week? Our weekly recaps are intended to give readers a brief overview of what they might have missed.

Student fans at sporting events:
With game expectations set by captains of winter sports and school and athletic administrators, students at the high school are now allowed to attend indoor sporting events starting Monday, Feb. 7. This decision allowed student fans and players’ guardians to attend Senior Day matches for boys varsity basketball and hockey.

At-home testing:
To improve COVID-19 mitigation, families can now sign up for a weekly home surveillance testing kit which could be picked up at the high school as of Feb. 8 through the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE)’s initiative. The Brookline Department of Public Health is also offering free COVID-19 antigen tests to all Brookline residents. These test kits will be available for pickup beginning Monday, Feb. 14.

MA school mask mandate to be lifted:
To improve the quality of learning and student mental health, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker announced on Wednesday, Feb. 10 that the school mask mandate will be lifted on Feb. 28. This puts the decision of whether or not to require masks into the hands of individual administrations. Masks will still be required on school buses as this is a federal requirement.

Oscar nominations:
Nominations for the 94th Academy Awards were released on Tuesday, Feb. 8. This year, the Oscars be hosted for the first time since Jimmy Kimmel hosted in 2018. Instead of just one host this year, there will be three with each host in control for an hour. Make sure to tune in on Sunday, March 27 at 8 p.m. ET to watch the Awards!

Start of the Olympics:
Norway currently leads the 2022 Winter Olympics’ medal count with 21 medals in total, while the United States sits at seventh with four gold medals. This first week saw many notable performances including that of American-born 18-year-old Eileen Gu, who is representing the People’s Republic of China, winning the gold medal in Big Air Freestyle skiing on Tuesday, Feb. 8. The acclaimed American snowboarder Shaun White competed in his final Olympic halfpipe competition (in which he fell short of the podium in fourth place) on Friday, Feb. 11.

15-year-old Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva, who has already won a gold medal in team figure skating, received positive results for the banned trimetazidine (a drug connected to enhanced sports performances through boosting the heart’s efficiency) in a test taken in Dec. of 2021. This failed test has led to controversy around whether or not Valieva and her team members should receive medals and the medal ceremony has been postponed.

Canada protests:
A Canadian vaccine mandate that requires all Canadian truckers to be fully vaccinated or quarantine for two weeks after their entrance into Canada sparked protests from truckers opposing this mandate and other COVID-19 restrictions in a “Freedom Convoy.” Protests started in Western Canada and reached Canada’s capital, Ottawa, in late Jan. where they are now infamous for their disruptive honking. Truckers have blockaded the Ambassador Bridge, which connects Detroit, Michigan and Windsor, Ontario and protests have spread throughout the nation’s cities.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in a conference the truckers are now infringing on Canadian law with their protests which could lead to serious consequences for them in the future.

“If you joined the protests because you’re tired of COVID, you now need to understand that you are breaking laws,” Trudeau said. “You don’t want to end up losing your license, end up with a criminal record, which will impact your job, your livelihood.”