When will Stanislaus County schools open? Top health official weighs in.
Stanislaus County schools would resume in early May under a rough time line laid out by the county health officer on Wednesday night.
It would take about that long to control the spread of the coronavirus, Dr. Julie Vaishampayan said in a Facebook Live forum. She was joined by county Sheriff Jeff Dirkse and Modesto Mayor Ted Brandvold.
Vaishampayan said the state’s stay-home order has to stay in place long enough to slow the COVID-19 transmission. She projected six weeks between last week’s order and a possible school resumption in early May.
“We need to make sure that the (virus) activity is very much down and the threat is decreased to a very low level before we want people to start mixing again in the ways they have been,” Vaishampayan said.
On Thursday morning, the Stanislaus County Office of Education issued a news release on the postponement of reopening schools, which districts had initially planned to do on various dates between April 6 and April 20.
“To prevent further spread of COVID-19, the Stanislaus County Office of Education, in collaboration with the 25 school districts in the county, and the Stanislaus Public Health Department, is announcing that school closures are extending through May 3, 2020. Students will return to school on May 4,” the release said.
In it, county Superintendent of Schools Scott Kuykendall said, “It is critical that learning continues for all students during school closures.” Parent resources are available from local school districts and on SCOE’s website at www.stancoe.org/coronavirus.
Last week, Gov. Gavin Newsom said California parents and students should expect schools to stay closed through summer break. “I would plan and assume that it’s unlikely that many of these schools, few, if any, will open before the summer break,” he said.
Stanislaus had 13 confirmed cases as of Thursday morning and no deaths. An explosion in the count could overwhelm hospitals, Vaishampayan said.
Dirkse again urged residents to heed the stay-at-home order unless they work in jobs deemed “essential.” He said “social pressure” is preferred over law enforcement in keeping the county healthy.
Brandvold reiterated that the city is not shutting off its utility services for nonpayment during the emergency. He also urged residents to find volunteer opportunities at www.lovemodesto.com.
This story was originally published March 25, 2020 at 8:09 PM.
