Delay the start of in-person school

In recent years, society has continued to grow more polarized concerning various topics with each passing day. These issues have ranged widely on the spectrum of importance. For instance, what is the color of a dress posted to Instagram? Others have been more impactful, such as police reform.

2020 has continued this trend. There is one issue, though, that I thought would bring most people together—the safety and well-being of children and local educators. We’re talking about the welfare of people to whom we have entrusted the vital task of nourishing future generations’ minds. And yet, here we are, still divided over such an important point.

Why is this the case? First, let’s look at some facts.

According to the Hamilton County Health Department, there have been 4,043 COVID-19 cases. Of those cases, 21% (838) have been in the 0-20 age range. To further break it down, of the 40 deaths, 5% (2) have died from COVID-19. Keep in mind that most children have not been in a crowded school environment during most of the outbreak. The numbers listed above are before we even factor in the seasonal flu. Enrollment data reveals roughly 45,000 kids in the Hamilton County School System and approximately 18,600 students in Catoosa and Walker County – that’s almost 64,000 combined.

Many critics have argued that children aren’t affected by the virus. Fortunately, we have some real-world data from which to draw some outlooks. Consider what happened when Israel introduced children back into a school atmosphere.

According to compiled Health Ministry data, at Israel’s highest point, they had roughly 600 cases daily. New cases dropped to almost zero before schools began to reopen in May. Since opening, not only has Israel rebounded, they have nearly doubled their daily average at its highest point. Israel required all students to wear face masks during recess and simultaneously, requiring grades 4-12 to wear them in class. In contrast, Catoosa County has opted not to mandate face coverings at all.

Lastly, researchers from Tulane have found that Coronavirus droplets can live in the air for over 16 hours. Therefore, without adequately working ventilation units, the virus will linger in the air. This could leave children and teachers to breathe in the virus day after day. How do you think that makes the educators feel?

Why should this information be troubling? Just under half of all employees for the Catoosa County School system are over the age of 50. Meanwhile, Hamilton County has over a third for the same demographic. Why is this significant? Based on CDC data, over 92% of all COVID-19 deaths in the United States have been people age 55 and up. This is the reason why educators are so scared to return to their classrooms. They have to choose between their livelihoods and their lives.

These reasons alone should be enough to give local school boards and governments pause in their decision making, allowing time to come up with a better solution. If you need more convincing that “the plan” is completely and utterly inadequate, then consider a few logistical questions.

For example,

1. What are the logistics of bus routes?

2. How will we screen for symptoms?

3. Isolation protocols: What happens if a kid/teacher has a confirmed case of Coronavirus? Will the classroom be put on quarantine at their homes? Will that, in turn, lead to parents being in quarantine?

Seriously think about the answers to the issues above. The data shows that the question isn’t “Will children or teachers die this year?”, it’s “How many?”, and “What threshold of death is acceptable?” This thinking brings us back to the original question. “Why?”

It’s merely a matter of polarizing identity politics. More and more, we are deciding our worldview based on a political party’s talking points. Every time we turn on Facebook, we drown in “politically charged” memes. So much so, it is impeding our parental judgment and leading elected politicians to view “a few” of them as disposable.

I think we can all agree that no one wants kids to miss school altogether, nor does anyone want children or educators to die. So how do we address these urgent concerns? We ask our officials for a little time. Let’s bide our time with digital learning or staggered school days. This extra time allows school administrators, educators, and others on the front line to adequately prepare for the challenges of teaching during a pandemic. This also gives them room to develop a workable plan that is responsible not only for our children’s wellbeing but also for theirs.