Some Virginia schools reluctant to reopen
New state guidelines are encouraging in-person learning
RICHMOND — Gov. Ralph Northam announced new guidelines Thursday that put pressure on school districts to begin in-person instruction sooner than later.
The updated guidelines are not a directive, but more like a gentle push. The 14-page document re-emphasizes dozens of factors that the state has always said schools should consider, such as learning loss and student mental health. New though is explicit guidance to consider resuming in-person classes even when the number of coronavirus cases in the community is high.
Ultimately, the decision still lies in the hands of superintendents and school boards that have spent half the school year debating how to apply the last set of guidelines — with many opting for caution. But Northam said it’s time to consider a new approach.
“Instead of (saying) schools should be closed, we’re going to approach it from the starting point of schools need to be open, and here are the ways to do that safely,” Northam said.
State Superintendent James Lane said the new guidance isn’t asking districts to abandon caution, just take into account what’s been learned about the virus.
“We know so much more now,” Lane said on a conference call Thursday. “We know that schools can open safely.”
Temporary remote instruction is suggested only when community transmission rates are at their highest, its effect is seen through things like teacher or student absences or cases and when schools can’t implement mitigation strategies. If community transmission is high but the school-based effects are lower and mitigation strategies can be carried out, then as many students who can be should have the option to be in-person.
The “should be in school” part oftheguidanceisthemainchange. It draws in part on a thesis often repeated by officials in districts like Chesapeake and Isle of Wight that have the most aggressive return plans locally — the virus isn’t spreading more in schools than the surrounding community.
But, state officials acknowledged in a letter to superintendents that high community case numbers do lead to more cases and outbreaks in schools.
Most students in Hampton Roads are learning virtually, and some haven’t set foot in a classroom since March. Chesapeake is the only one of the seven cities with plans to bring back students this month. Other districts have paused their hybrid learning plans in the face of soaring case numbers.
Northam’s announcement is unlikely to change that, but Lane said the state hopes the guidance prompts districts to be more aggressive, particularly as parts of the state begin to vaccinate K-12 employees. Vaccination doesn’t need to be a precursor to reopening, Lane said, but he acknowledged the timing of the second phase, which includes teachers, will make districts more comfortable.
“We don’t anticipate that new schools will start opening tomorrow on this guidance,” Lane said. “But here in the coming weeks, we expect our school boards to look at this and make decisions based on a much more clear matrix around how to do this decision making.”
Many districts so far have based their decisions on Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines that came out shortly after the school year started. They outline three key metrics: the number of COVID-19 cases, the percentage of tests coming back positive and the ability of schools to institute “key” mitigation measures like masking and social distancing.
The state shortly afterwards matched those CDC guidelines with phases of reopening. In the highest category? Stay with virtual learning. For districts in one of the lower risk categories, some combination of virtual and in-person learning is advised.
The updated guidelines, the first from the state since October, tell schools to take a five-part approach.
First, schools should assess how well they’ve implemented mitigation strategies such as wearing masks, physical distancing, hand-washing and contact tracing. Few schools so far have rated themselves at anything other than at the lowest risk for transmission in that category, saying they’ve fully implemented mitigation measures.
However, there have been cracks. Virginia Beach’s superintendent said this week he believed high community case numbers could overwhelm their contact tracers, part of his recommendation to stay virtual this month.
The second step asks districts to consider the effect of COVID19 on schools. That means looking at the number of outbreaks in the school, how many students are absent and if the building is fully staffed.
If there are only sporadic cases, low student absenteeism and staff capacity is normal, the guidelines suggest the level of school impact is “low.” If there are several outbreaks or large outbreaks, many students are missing school and staffing is low, the impact is “high.