Back to campus in March: Stanislaus County middle, high schools set target for reopening
Stanislaus County health and education officials said Tuesday that they anticipate junior highs and high schools being able to reopen around mid-March in the same hybrid fashion occurring in elementary schools.
Details and agreements have to be worked out between school districts and their labor partners, county Superintendent of Schools Scott Kuykendall said by phone Tuesday. But almost certainly, student populations would be divided in two, alternating on campus two days a week each, and all studying at home on the fifth day.
“This is on the heels of the governor lifting the stay-at-home order,” the superintendent said, and on the heels of schools starting the seasons of sports including cross country, swimming, golf and tennis. “These things are beginning to move forward, so I’m really optimistic that by March 15, we’ll be able to bring our high school and junior high students back to campus.”
Kuykendall said he emailed school district superintendents on Monday about the development, and they’ll all meet Friday to “talk about it extensively.”
He said he shared with his fellow superintendents that the reopening plan reflects the “best thinking at this time from our county health officer and I’m supportive of that. ... This is a step in the right direction as far as having a date that we can plan for as a goal to get our students back on campus.”
So far, the students on campuses at the secondary level have been those most struggling with distance learning because of Internet connectivity, home environments not conducive to studying, or other reasons. They’re working in small, stable learning cohorts. The March return would be for all students except those whose families opt to continue with distance learning only.
‘Rate of spread is still high’
In a statement to The Bee, county Public Health Officer Dr. Julie Vaishampayan said, “While I cannot predict the future, we need to plan for more school openings when allowed by CDPH (California Department of Public Health) guidance. Looking at the slope of the line marking our decrease in case rate (7-day average, 7-day lag), it is reasonable to use March 15 as the tentative date of meeting criteria for reopening grades 7-12. This is dependent on the slope continuing to decrease at the current rate.
“We really need all in Stanislaus County to continue to take actions to decrease spread. Our rate of spread is still high and we need to bring this down to open schools, restaurants, gyms, and many other activities. Stay home when sick (we continue to see about one-third of all people who test positive for COVID-19 going to work or school while symptomatic), always wear a face covering and stay at least 6 feet apart when with non-household members, don’t gather with those outside your household, wash hands frequently, and get vaccinated when it’s your turn.”
In an email to The Bee on Tuesday afternoon, Turlock Unified School District spokeswoman Marie Russell also noted that getting kids back on campuses will continue to depend on safe behavior by everyone.
“As we have continued to share with our stakeholders,” she said, “we are hopeful for a continued decline in the average daily case rate for COVID-19 so we can get to red tier numbers for five consecutive days to meet the state’s new criteria for reopening as outlined in the ‘COVID-19 reopening In-Person Instruction Framework & Public Health Guidance for K-12 Schools in California, 2020-2021 School Year.’
“Returning our secondary students in March, the same month we closed them at the start of the pandemic, will take a continued communitywide effort and commitment to follow health and safety protocols.”
Turlock sends 7-12 plan to county health
Just Monday, TUSD announced on Facebook that it has submitted to county health officials its COVID-19 Safety Plan for reopening secondary campuses, and that staff will make a presentation to the Board of Trustees next week.
In early November, the Modesto City Schools board heard a presentation on that district’s 7-12 Safe Schools Reopening Plan and approved the reopening time line once Stanislaus County reaches and remains in the so-called red tier of COVID-19 risk level.
“At this point, we are actively working with our labor partners to further determine operational logistics that are needed to reopen our 7-12 schools,” MCS district spokeswoman Krista Noonan told The Bee in an email Tuesday morning. “This will also involve submitting the 7-12 reopening plan to Public Health in the future. The plan will be very similar to our PreK-6th grade reopening plan, but it will have more specifics that are unique to the structure of our 7-12 schools.”
Among the key differences between reopening primary and secondary schools are that junior highs, middle schools and high schools have much greater student populations, and those students move from classroom to classroom during the day.
The Turlock plan, submitted to the county Feb. 3, says secondary students and staff will be kept in groups with fixed membership that stay together for all activities, including lunch.
“One of the challenges for returning secondary vs. elementary students is meeting the state requirements for ‘small, stable cohorts,’ ” Russell said. “We have worked closely with (the Stanislaus County Health Services Agency), as have surrounding districts, on creating a schedule that will minimize the number of contacts students have on campus, while also affording them the opportunity for in-person instruction.”
Synchronous teaching to teens in class, at home
A school’s student population will be split into two groups, which will receive in-person instruction on alternate days. One group will attend school Mondays and Thursdays, the reopening plan says, and the other on Tuesdays and Fridays. Wednesdays will be distance learning for all.
Teachers will be synchronously instructing both their students in the classroom and those at home.
The division will cut class sizes by at least half. They could be even smaller because some families are likely to keep students on distance learning even with the opportunity to return to campus.
Students will follow a block schedule to minimize the number of contacts they have on a school day, the plan says, and breakfast and lunch meals will be prepackaged.
Safety measures for Turlock campuses appear the same as at elementary schools. Staff and students in all grade levels will be required to wear face coverings at all times, while at school and on district transportation, unless exempted.
Of course, in high school, many students don’t ride school buses, but rather drive themselves or carpool. Carpooling would be discouraged, Russell said, but the district can control only its own home-to-school transportation protocols.
As for how long they’re in school, she said that will vary slightly by school, but “in general, they will be on campus until lunchtime, then they will receive a ‘grab and go’ meal and return home for afternoon distance-learning classes.”
Cut periods, cut risk of spread
Students will attend three periods rather than the traditional six. Under current county health guidance, she said, a school must close a classroom if there is a positive case. So “instead of sending potentially six classes home to quarantine for 10 days due to an exposure, we would only be sending three, and those students will be able to continue instruction at home synchronously with new technology we’ve purchased for our classrooms.”
The Monday-Thursday and Tuesday-Friday split of cohorts also will give the district and schools time to do the necessary contact tracing and communication prior to students returning to campus, she said.
Noonan and Russell both noted that in recent months, the State Department of Public Health has implemented updated protocols. Among them, Russell said, is that face coverings are now required in K-12, schools must justify instances where 6 feet of physical distancing cannot be maintained, and there is less emphasis on disinfection and more focus on hand hygiene and ventilation.
In addition to the Turlock Unified reopening plan going before the Board of Trustees at its meeting Tuesday, there will be forums, surveys and COVID-19 trainings later this month, according to the district’s Facebook post.
This story was originally published February 9, 2021 at 2:00 PM.
