Weekly Briefing 10.30.20

 Lewis County Metrics

Case numbers remain lower than they have been, but still not trending in the right direction. Remember, we're working to get below 25 cases per 100,000 so that we can return all of our students to the buildings and have high risk sporting activities (like basketball games). In Kansas, they've found that counties with mask mandates have reduced their case rates while counties without them have not. While most of the cases in our county are currently in Centralia and Chehalis, most of us find ourselves in those communities on a fairly regular basis and could potentially bring the virus home. Additionally, when we get together with family and friends from other areas, there is the potential to become infected. One of the best ways to virtually eliminate your risk is by wearing a mask and staying 6' away from others.

Reopening Update

Beginning Monday, all TES grades will return to TES on an AM/PM schedule (half of the class in the morning and half in the afternoon). On-campus instruction will continue Monday through Thursday with Friday remaining a remote learning day for all. This allows teachers to prepare online lessons and also allows our custodial team to deep clean the building for the following week. We run a skeleton crew on Fridays so that we're not in the way of our custodial team.

TMS continues to serve students with specific needs on campus and is putting together plans to serve students on campus and remotely beginning on Dec. 1. This will be the start of the new trimester and is consistent with the recommendations of Lewis County Public Health. 

THS is planning to return seniors to the building on Dec. 1 for at least half-time instruction. We're concerned with the number of seniors who are not engaging in their work and worry that they may jeopardize their graduation in the spring. Ventilation at THS was poor to begin with and has been taxed by dust from construction. We have decided to wait until mid-January when the new classrooms are complete to return grades 9-11 to the building. 

Athletic teams are practicing but won't be able to play games until case rates get down into the moderate range (<75/100,000) for volleyball and low range (<25/100,000) for basketball. These levels are according to WIAA return to play regulations. This is one of the reasons that I stress using the tools we have to reduce the spread of the disease. We want our kids to be able to play ball and we know our community does too.

Attestations

Students who are learning on-campus are asked to bring a special "coupon" with them each day filled out by a parent. This coupon says that the child has no symptoms and hasn't been in contact with anyone who has tested positive. When this is completed and given to our staff on arrival, the student goes right to getting their temperature checked and off to class. Students without this have to stop and answer questions. Your child should have brought a booklet of these coupons home to you. If you run low or didn't receive them, call your child's school or drop by to pick up a booklet. Having these filled out makes the arrival process smoother and more efficient.