School year will start with students at home
IMPERIAL COUNTY – The 2020-21 school year will begin with students attending class at home.
Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Friday that most counties will start the school year online due to soaring coronavirus cases and hospitalizations. These are counties on the state Monitoring List, including Imperial County.
Newsom said the state prefers for schools to resume in-person instruction when it’s safe but that time isn’t now for more than 30 of the state’s 58 counties suffering a spike in virus cases, and they must meet strict criteria for reopening.
In a joint press release, Imperial County School Superintendent Dr. Todd Finnell and Imperial County Public Health Officer said all schools will remain in distance learning until the county has been removed from the Monitoring List for a period of 14 consecutive days. At that time, schools will be permitted to provide in-person instruction subject to comprehensive guidance and health and safety requirements.
“As the Imperial County Public Health Officer and County Superintendent of Schools, we commit to work closely with each school in order to ensure a successful start to the upcoming school year,” the release said. “We understand the hardship this presents for our students and families and will work with our community to provide assistance and support.”
The release said education leaders and public health officials have worked collaboratively since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We remain committed to this collaboration and will continually evaluate local health conditions and updated guidance from federal, state, and local sources,” it said. “As local health conditions improve and guidance evolves, our schools are committed to safely transition to in-person instruction and support services to the greatest extent possible.”
The release acknowledged some parents may wish to continue with a distance learning model and not return physically to school for some time. Consequently, Imperial County schools will offer a distance learning option for parents throughout the 2020-21 school year.
The release said all schools will be developing comprehensive plans in the coming weeks to address the following critical areas of their school programs: mental health and social and emotional well-being, pupil engagement and outreach, school nutrition, pupil learning loss, distance learning program, and in-person instructional offerings.
“These plans depend heavily on local stakeholders, such as students, parents, teachers, staff and others, to ensure schools are meeting the diverse needs of our individual communities, with special attention to our most vulnerable and at-risk learners,” the release said. “Active participation by all stakeholders in this process is essential.”
As for the 28 counties absent from the state Monitoring List, they will be able to bring students and teachers back to campus, albeit with face masks, hand-washing stations, socially distant seating and lots of hand sanitizer. These are rural counties in the central and northern parts of the state that have seen little of the virus.