Could elementary schools reopen this fall? SLO County has a way to make it happen
Local elementary schools could hold in-person instruction this fall if they meet certain criteria, San Luis Obispo County Public Health officials announced Wednesday.
According to a county news release, SLO County Superintendent of Schools James Brescia and County Public Health Officer Dr. Penny Borenstein sent a joint letter to local elementary school leaders this week, notifying them of the process to apply for a waiver that would allow the schools to reopen this fall.
The county Public Health Department will begin accepting waiver application submissions Wednesday from schools or school districts in accordance with the state’s guidance for reopening, according to the release. Waiver requests are expected to take at least one week for review after submission.
“We will continue to prioritize and prepare for safe in-person learning for elementary school students as provided for in the state’s guidance,” Brescia said in the release. “We have also asked the state to allow in-person instruction to populations with special needs under certain conditions.”
In-person schooling is currently prohibited in San Luis Obispo County because the county is on the state’s COVID-19 monitoring list. But according to the release, the state does allow county Public Health to approve waivers to local elementary schools, grade six and below, to allow for in-person instruction as long as it is requested by the superintendent and labor, parent and community organizations are consulted.
Waivers would be issued based on the most current scientific data, according to the news release, and a review of local case data.
COVID-19 risk lower in young children
Borenstein said elementary students, rather than older students, could potentially return to in-person classes because the risk to younger students is lower than their middle school and high school counterparts.
“COVID-related risks in schools serving elementary age students are different from the risks to staff and students in schools serving older students,” Borenstein said. “There appears to be a lower risk of child-to-child or child-to-adult transmission in children under 12 years old, and the risk of infection and serious illness in elementary school children is considered low.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said that children, including very young children, can get sick with COVID-19, though their cases tend to be much less severe than those in adults and they often do not exhibit symptoms. The CDC is also investigating cases of multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) associated with COVID-19.
SLO County has to be off the county monitoring list for at least 14 days before wider in-person instruction, i.e. middle and high schools, would be allowed to reopen.
Strict hygiene protocols must be followed to open schools
Despite the lower risks in elementary-age children, strict hygiene protocols will have to be met and maintained in order to hold classes on campuses, Borenstein said. Students and teachers will have to wear masks and physically distance as much as possible, she added.
Some school district leaders from San Luis Coastal Unified and Shandon Joint Unified said they have received enough personal protective equipment and sanitation products to last the fall term. Both districts also said, if they are granted the waiver, that they will have teachers wear clear face protective shields with a cloth covering to seal the bottom. This allows students to see a teachers’ facial expressions while maintaining a safe environment.
“We feel (the face shields) still provide a great level of safety while allowing students to see verbal expressions, emotional expressions, lips moving,” said Kimberly McGrath, San Luis Coastal’s assistant superintendent.
McGrath said that students who are English-language learners, deaf and those with special needs will particularly benefit from the face shields.
Brescia said he has already received interest from about seven schools in the county that wish to bring elementary students onto campuses this fall.
If families do not feel comfortable sending their children to in-person classes, Brescia said all school districts will offer some form of distance learning or independent study. For students living in larger, more populated communities like San Luis Obispo or Paso Robles, the risk may be greater than those in the smaller, more rural areas, he said.
“We wish we could have students in person for the absolute best educational experience,” McGrath said. “But I really think it just depends on a family circumstance, their level of comfort, and for them to decide which is best for their family.”
Teachers, who are at higher risk of getting COVID-19, are wary
For teachers, the decision is a little different. Adults are more at risk of getting sick with COVID-19, according to the World Health Organization.
In order to get a waiver approved, the school must have approval from the teachers’ union.
“They (teachers) very much want to see their students, but want to do it safely and in a healthy way,” said Kristina Benson, superintendent for Shandon Joint Unified School District. “There are some teachers that would meet the criteria for being a distance-learning-only teacher and then some would be on as a requested assignment — either for distance learning or for in person.”
Benson, McGrath and Brescia said teachers and the districts are still figuring out what in-person classes will look like, so it is too early to tell whether teachers will agree to the waivers.
However, at several school board meetings over the past few weeks, teachers, teachers’ unions and parents have repeatedly asked school districts to go fully online for the fall semester.
“The reality is there are too many unknowns, and asking teachers to potentially put their lives at risk is unacceptable,” Sheri Brown said at a San Luis Coastal board meeting during public comments on July 16. “Most teachers cannot spend an entire day six feet away from all children that they encounter.”
If students or teachers do get sick, the schools may be forced to shut down completely and do distance learning only.
The California Department of Public Health set out guidelines for schools detailing what steps to take should a student or staff member develop symptoms. Schools closure may be appropriate when there are multiple cases within classes or groups at a school, or when at least 5% of the total number of teachers or students test positive for COVID-19 within a 14-day period, according to the department.
The CDPH also noted that a superintendent should close a school district if 25% or more of schools in a district have closed due to COVID-19 cases.
With the first day of classes quickly approaching, schools are working nonstop to finalize plans for the fall semester.
“I think that the majority of our boards, our staff, our administrators, and even our families want to see children return but in as safe an environment as possible,” Brescia said. “And we have some students that need to have in-person instruction be best served — and I think people are anxious to help with that.”
This story was originally published July 29, 2020 at 4:02 PM.
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