Hoffman: Control COVID before reopening schools

President Donald Trump on Tuesday said he would pressure governors to reopen schools for fall, but Arizona’s school superintendent issued a statement afterward that the state first will need to “get COVID-19 under control.”

Kathy Hoffman tweeted on Tuesday in response to a White House event on school reopening where Trump made his remarks. While the president is pushing for schools to reopen, Hoffman expressed skepticism over the idea that Arizona schools are ready.

“Today’s discussion at the White House Summit on Safely Reopening America’s Schools did not reflect the magnitude or severity of Arizona’s growing public health crisis,” she wrote.

Hoffman wrote that she would welcome “more aggressive action” from Gov. Doug Ducey to help curb the spread of COVID-19. The governor most recently ordered a delay to the start of in-person classes, until at least Aug. 17. He also ordered the closing of several types of businesses that had reopened, including bars, gyms and movie theaters, until July 27.

Hoffman added that given rising case numbers and “the fact that Arizona remains open,” she could not assure that students and teachers have the resources they need to stop community spread of the virus.

The president has escalated his calls in recent days for the nation’s schools to open. In a roundtable event at the White House on Tuesday with educators, students and parents, Trump, downplaying recent increases in COVID-19 cases, said, “We want to get our schools open – we want to get them open quickly,” according to USA Today.

Meanwhile, hospitalizations due to COVID-19 continue to rise in Arizona.

On Tuesday the state reported another 3,653 COVID-19 cases and 117 more known deaths.

The rising case numbers last week prompted Ducey to delay the start of in-person classes for K-12 schools. The governor called Aug. 17 a target date and said his office would continue to reevaluate that start date.

Several major districts, including Chandler Unified, announced in the wake of Ducey’s announcements that students would start the school year learning remotely, through online programs.

State leaders are working to improve access to reliable high-speed internet and devices for all students, in case distance learning needs to continue intermittently as the country battles the pandemic.