Dozens of Bay Area schools ask about waivers to let kids return to class
Dozens of Bay Area schools have inquired with local health officials about waivers that would let them reopen classrooms to kids since Gov. Gavin Newsom ruled last week that K-12 instruction begin the school year online in counties on the state’s coronavirus watchlist.
That includes more than 80 Santa Clara County schools and “several” in San Francisco, according to their health departments. Alameda county said it will not consider waivers until its COVID-19 outbreak improves. Contra Costa county did not respond to a Bay Area News Group inquiry Friday. San Mateo County is currently not on the watchlist so schools don’t need permission.
While officials would not identify the schools seeking waivers, many are likely private schools, as most public schools already had been dropping plans to reopen under pressure from teacher unions.
“We are interested in being afforded flexibility and these decisions ought to be decided on a campus-by-campus basis,” said Ron Reynolds, executive director of the California Association of Private School Organizations. “There are a considerable number of private schools where you have small enrollments and class sizes that would make it possible to reopen and meet all the local health department requirements.”
But just what those requirements are continues to change, as school and public health officials scramble to interpret a multitude of studies and safety recommendations from local, state and federal agencies in the face of an unprecedented global pandemic. So it isn’t clear which schools will succeed, because the application and review process still hasn’t been formalized by the state.
Reopening schools has become hotly debated. President Donald Trump has urged schools to reopen, citing concerns about not only the generally poor experience with online learning over the spring but the economic impact on families with parents who cannot work if kids aren’t in school.
On Friday, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued revised guidelines aimed at making it easier for schools to reopen. Deputy Secretary of Education Mitchell Zais said school closures threaten to keep 5.6 million parents from working at a potential $232 billion loss to the economy.
“The default needs to be that schools are fully open in the fall,” Zais said. “The research and science continue to suggest it is safer and healthier and better for students to be in school full time. It’s not a matter if it should be done but how it must be done.”
But teacher unions, while acknowledging kids do better in class, have fought school reopening, arguing schools lack resources and plans to adequately protect teachers, administrators, staff and students from COVID-19 as it spreads rapidly in California and other states.
Newsom a week ago ordered that schools in counties that are on a state coronavirus monitoring list must not physically open for in-person instruction until after the counties have been off the list for 14 consecutive days. In the greater Bay Area, every county except San Mateo and Santa Cruz is on the list.
Newsom offered a single exception: Local health officers may grant a waiver to allow elementary schools to reopen if it’s requested by the district superintendent “in consultation with labor, parents and community-based organizations” and the state Department of Public Health.
Updated state reopening guidance called for all adults to stay 6 feet from one another and 6 feet away from children, while students stay 6 feet apart “as practicable.” Anyone entering the school must do a health screen, and if exhibiting symptoms, immediately sent home. Masks are required for grades 3 and above, and urged for the rest.
Private schools have argued that with smaller enrollments and class sizes, they are better positioned to accommodate physical distancing and other safety measures. Reynolds also noted that most Catholic parochial schools are K-8, so under the state’s rules, the 6th- 7th- and 8th-graders wouldn’t be allowed on campus even if the school got a waiver.
“What our children will lose by ‘virtual’ education – in terms of emotional development, skills and learning and achievement – will have a significant impact,” the bishops said in a statement. “In the name of protecting their health in the short-term, we may very likely be risking their long-term growth and potential.”
Like their public school counterparts, however, private school teachers are concerned, though they say they have less power to argue for online-only instruction because most aren’t in a union.
https://www.mercurynews.com/2020/07/25/dozens-of-bay-area-schools-ask-about-waivers-to-let-kids-return-to-class/