Weekly Update 12.18.20

 Lewis County Metrics

Cases spiked this week making Lewis County the 10th highest rate of infection in the state and the highest in Western Washington. "Hands, Face and Space" remains the best weapon against spread of the virus. This week, 975 dosed of the Pfizer vaccine were allocated to Lewis County. In a county with over 79,000 residents, this will only be enough for healthcare providers, first responders and those in elder care facilities. Vaccines are not expected to make a difference in the spread of COVID until spring.

New Dept. of Health Guidelines

On Wednesday, Governor Inslee, Superintendent Reykdal and representatives of the DOH and others held a press conference. The Governor introduced new school opening guidelines. He also made it clear that while he has the authority to close schools, he does not have the authority to open them. That authority rests with local school boards. The Governor indicated that those districts that were successfully operating in-person should continue even though the guidelines might indicate otherwise. Toledo, for example, is serving students in person in all schools even though case rates are well above the thresholds indicated in the new guidelines.

Here are the guidelines: 

At 630 cases per 100,000, we are well above the top of the "High Activity" category. Nevertheless, we continue to safely serve students in-person. As of this writing, Toledo Schools have had a total of 5 COVID-positive cases and 3 close-contacts. No staff members have tested positive at this time. We have had many students and families quarantining due to close contacts, but no exposures at school that we know of. We believe that school is one of the safest places for students and staff right now. Very few other places are doing daily wellness screening, disinfecting, 100% masking, regular handwashing and watching distances. We believe- and the data on schools supports this- that we can remain safely open in our current configuration.

Note that when cases are below 50/100,000 the guidelines indicate that it will be safe to return to in-person instruction. I read this to mean regular order when we're able to get our case rates down below 50. We can do this!

THS Reopening

The high school construction project has been delayed due to COVID. Several employees of subcontractors have tested positive and are quarantined. In addition, important materials and equipment have been delayed by COVID in the supply chain. This means that we will not be able to bring students to the new classrooms at THS on January 4. We are working with our contractor and architect to identify firm dates for occupancy of the new spaces. In the meantime, the team at THS is working on a schedule that might accommodate more students than we currently have. Due to construction, many areas of the existing school are not available. In ordinary circumstances, we would be cramped. Crowding isn't an option right now, so we're working on other options. Watch this blog for weekly updates on progress or contact Mr. Huffman at THS.

Weekly Briefing 12.11.20

 Lewis County Metrics

Cases continue to rise in Lewis County. While this is of concern, the good news is that it is beginning to appear that schools are among the safest places for children right now. During this school year, we have had only two COVID+ cases among students and staff. There are a number of families who have been close contacts and are isolating at home, but only two COVID+ cases associated with school. This is because everyone has been so diligent and responsible in using all of the tools available to slow the spread of the virus. 

We're asking that everyone keep up the good work and help us by doing the daily attestations and temperature checks, wearing masks, distancing and washing hands. Together, we're making this work out in our favor. Thank you for helping us keep our schools operating on campus. This has been a gamechanger for our students.

THS Return

COVID has impacted our subcontractors. Several of the crewmembers have tested positive and will be quarantined. As a result, important portions of the project will be delayed and will impact our ability to bring students into the new classrooms in January as we'd hoped. The team at THS is currently working on a plan for hybrid instruction using the old classroom wing. We are working on scheduling to see when a move will be possible.

It is important for us to have our high school students return and we plan to do that in a way that is safe and allows for social distancing. This will likely be a hybrid schedule of some sort. More as it becomes available.

Self-Care

Many of us recently participated in a training from Dr. Mona Johnson* on self-care during a disaster. The pandemic is a natural disaster like hurricanes, floods, fires and earthquakes. Unlike those other natural disasters, this one has a much longer duration.

In the chart above, you can see  how people respond in disasters. At the beginning, everyone is on board and working hard to survive and solve problems. This is the "honeymoon" phase that we saw in March and April.

As time moves on, we become fatigued and begin to feel the impact of the disaster more acutely. Community cooperation begins to decrease. As people try to cope, there is an increase in substance abuse, domestic violence and stress responses such as angry outbursts and overeating. We're seeing this now in protests and angry posts on social media. The holidays only serve to make this worse as people struggle with finances, missing family that they've lost or can't see and those who may be facing eviction.

Knowing that we're still in some of the darkest moments of this disaster, it is important that we all do what we can to take care of ourselves and encourage those we love to do the same. You can see more about what can be predicted by looking at the chart below.  Notice the holiday season and how this is particularly troublesome during a disaster. 

Taking care of ourselves is how we build the resilience needed to get through to the "other side" of this disaster.

Our personal mental health determines our ability to cope with the stress of this disaster. Maintaining that mental health involves taking care of ourselves. Dr. Johnson proposes that this self-care falls into 8 categories:

Take a moment and think about the ways that you're already coping in each of these areas. Are you going for walks? Do you contact friends by phone, read a book, meditate or pray? By paying attention to doing things in these areas, you build resilience to deal with the stresses that are part of surviving a disaster. You also make it possible to help others. 

On an airplane flight, the flight attendant always tells us, "When the masks drop, put your mask on first and then help others." Making sure that you have plenty of oxygen allows you to be helpful to others. If you don't have enough for yourself, you become one more person who requires assistance. You can't help others if you succumb to the disaster. This is why self-care is so important.

It isn't "weak" to do this and there is no shame in asking for help. We are all navigating difficult waters right now. Just as we always do in our community, helping one another is the way we get through and strengthen our community. It's part of Toledo Pride. Be well. Take care of yourself and one another.

*My thanks to Dr. Mona Johnson for her instruction and graphics.

Weekly Briefing 12.4.20

 Lewis County Metrics

Cases in Lewis County continue to increase. Thanks to students, families, and staff, we have been able to continue to serve students on campus without needing to close. This is only possible because our families have been responsible and cautious when children have been exposed to someone who is infected and self-isolate. In addition, students have been very good about wearing masks and washing hands. (We are still working with them to stay 6' apart.) Research from schools indicates that schools aren't a significant source of community spread as long as these protocols are followed. We plan to continue serving students on campus unless otherwise directed. 

Our final group to return to on-campus instruction will be 9th-11th grade students who will come back to new classrooms at THS. We're still planning to move into the new classrooms during the holiday break and be ready for students on January 4.

Community Letter

It used to be that more people smoked cigarettes than do so now and smoking was common on airplanes, in restaurants and in office environments. In spite of people knowing that smoking was a health hazard, many felt it was their right and their choice to be able to smoke and to do so wherever they chose. There were protests, arguments and angry letters to the editor and people who were asked to leave when they chose to light up in public spaces after a long legislative battle to make that illegal. No one likes to be told to do things, even if those things might improve their health. The same was true for seatbelts, airbags, child labor, 40 hour work weeks and other things we now take for granted.

Today, we're all being asked to stay 6' apart, wear masks and be diligent about washing our hands in order to reduce the spread of the virus. These requests are for the health and safety of our communities and everyone is free to choose whether to do those things or not. While many folks choose to participate in this effort, many are opposed to it for a variety of reasons.

I serve on a workgroup that advises Lewis County Public Health on decisions related to school opening. Our work has been focused on returning students to on-campus instruction quickly and safely. We have been concerned about the effect of isolation on our children and the risks that remote instruction pose for the mental health of our kids. Lewis County is one of the most aggressive counties in our state in the return of students to on-campus instruction. Other counties and schools with lower infection rates are still fully remote in instruction. We're proud of this effort and others are beginning to observe that it is possible to do this well.

In order to continue this on-campus instruction, we need as many people as possible to participate in slowing the spread of the virus. If we can do this, I believe that we can continue to safely educate students on-campus and reduce the impact of the restrictions on the mental health of our kids. Our workgroup is asking everyone in the county to participate in this effort. This letter, endorsed by pediatricians, elected officials, pastors, and county and city officials will go out to the media. Whatever your opinions are about the Governor's mandates and national politics, I encourage you to participate in making sure that we can continue to safely educate students on campus. We're not asking that you agree with the Governor or his proclamations. We're only requesting that you do everything you can to reduce the spread of the virus.

Weekly Briefing 11.20.20

 Lewis County Metrics

Cases are on the increase again in Lewis County and are currently predicted to breach the 200/100,000 mark. We are beginning to get reports of students who have been exposed to adults who are testing COVID-positive. We are grateful to those families who are voluntarily isolating their children who have been exposed. As of this writing, no students or staff have tested positive for COVID. We believe that this is the result of our community masking, keeping distant and practicing hand hygiene. Our staff has been diligent at cleaning and disinfecting spaces as well as promoting "hands, face, space" in our buildings. As a team, we're doing our part to keep schools open in the buildings.

Holidays

Traditional times for gathering are here. This year, we ask that everyone is mindful that the virus does not observe holidays. Large, indoor gatherings will only put us further behind in our efforts to reopen our schools fully and see a return of athletics and activities. While it is painful to be away from our loved ones during the holidays, this sacrifice will help us not overrun our healthcare systems and will help us get our local businesses reopened.

TMS/THS

We are currently planning to bring students back to TMS on December 1. We're also planning to bring the Class of 2021 and students with special needs to THS the same day. We continue to be on track to bring all high school students back to the new classrooms in January. 

Until December 14, all indoor athletic activities are suspended. We're hoping that infection rates will subside enough that the Governor will lift those restrictions in December. 

We encourage parents to stay in contact with their students and teachers to help support learning remotely. We still have a number of disengaged students who will struggle when we come back to regular order if they haven't engaged in studies now.  

Our fall achievement scores were consistent with what we would have expected if we had been in school through the past spring. In spite of the shutdown, students have continued to grow. We note gaps in their skills and knowledge, but not as many or as profound as we were imagining. This is great news. It means that the learning losses can be overcome as long as students stay engaged.

Regular Order

I want to be certain that we don't begin to accept our current situation as something that will always be. Teaching and learning remotely is more difficult. Attending on a hybrid schedule is more difficult. Eating by yourself is unpleasant.

At some point, the impact of the virus will subside and we will return to all students learning on campus in regular groups. We'll have athletics, activities, music and community events. We are always pointing toward that goal of reducing the spread to levels where it is possible to have regular order again. Like young children on a long drive, I find myself asking, "Are we there yet? Are we there yet?" We thank you for your partnership in this effort. If everyone does their part, we'll get back to regular order.

Weekly Briefing 11.13.20

 Lewis County Metrics

Cases in Lewis County continue to rise, but at a somewhat lower level than the rest of the state. We have some students who have had close contacts and are isolating, but so far, no COVID-positive cases in our schools. We are hopeful that the holiday season won't increase cases and cause us to retreat from our current plans to bring TMS and the Class of 2021 back to the buildings. 

Thank you

Thanks to everyone who is practicing hand hygiene, masking and maintaining distance, we've been able to bring students back to TES and to have modified athletic practices. These have had tremendous benefit for our students, especially in their overall emotional well-being. Living a rural lifestyle allows us to "sneak around behind" the virus and engage in activities that are out of the reach of our urban neighbors. We are not immune though, so please continue to be vigilant especially during the holidays.

Weekly Briefing 11.6.20

 Lewis County Metrics

The curve appears to be flattening, but at a much higher level than we need in order to return to regular order. Hands, face and space remain the best weapons we have for reducing the spread.

Return to the Buildings

1st, 4th and 5th grades returned to TES this week on AM/PM schedules with half in the building for half the day, Monday through Thursday. Students and staff are excited to see one another again and to be working on campus, even though we're still using our safety protocols. Reminder that Fridays are a remote learning day for all students and staff to allow our maintenance team to do deep cleaning and disinfecting of the buildings.

Our thanks to parents who have been so cooperative in the transition from home to school by allowing busses to drop off students and clear before private vehicles enter the drop zone. This keeps our busses on schedule to get to the next set of homes and stops. Our transportation department is working almost constantly throughout the day with special routes in addition to the regular routes. We also thank you for using the attestation "coupons" as this speeds up the screening process upon entry to the building. 

Athletics

All sports are engaged in modified practices in cohorts of 6 with masks and distance. WIAA has new guidance on interscholastic contests. Currently, our county's case rate is too high to allow for contests. We're hoping that, by working together, we can reduce case rates so that our athletes can have a season. For more information on WIAA's guidance go to WIAA Guidance.

If you have questions about athletic seasons, practice or other athletic questions, please contact our Athletic Director, Grady Fallon.

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.

Weekly Briefing 10.23.20

 

Lewis County Metrics

The two-week average of cases declined this week and is expected to continue. We still remain one of the most active counties in Washington and well above the 75 threshold for moderate activity. 

Return to School Buildings

Our Kindergarteners have been at school successfully since Oct. 5. We plan to build on that success by returning 2nd and 3rd graders to the building on Oct. 26. All grades will be in the building half-day and remote learning half-day on Monday through Thursday. Everyone will remote learn on Fridays so that teachers can prepare lessons for those who have opted for remote learning only and our staff can deep clean the building. It is important that everyone understand that this is not "half-day school". Students are expected to learn at home when school is in session during their half-day away from the building. 

On November 2, we'll welcome our 1st, 4th and 5th grades back to the building on the same schedule. Doing it this way allows us to be sure that our safety measures are working well and we're prepared for additional people in the building. 

On behalf of all of us at TES and the district, we thank parents for observing our new safety protocols and helping us at drop off and pick up times. Transitions are difficult under the best of circumstances and changes to well-established routines create additional stress. We understand and are grateful for the grace that our parents have shown us as we reopen.

TMS/THS

TMS and THS will continue to serve students with special needs on campus as resources allow. We intend to return students to TMS on 12/1 in hybrid fashion. Specifics are still being worked out so that we can incorporate what we're learning from other schools into our plans. THS plans to bring Seniors back to the building on 12/1 as well. Grades 9-11 will return as soon as the new classrooms are ready for occupancy. Current timeline indicates we'll be able to move in during Winter holiday and be ready for students in January. The new Commons and admin offices will not be ready until February, so meals will be grab and go to be eaten in classrooms at THS.

Food for Thought

I have seasonal allergies. Other than grass, I'm not sure what makes me sneeze, but Friday morning I woke up sneezing repeatedly. I took my Allegra and waited for it to kick in. I went to work (sneezing) and worked through the morning (sneezing). I began to think that it wasn't polite for me to be at work and my Allegra wasn't doing the job, so I grabbed my stuff and decided to work from home.

As I drove home, I began thinking, what if my sneezing, coughing and body aches turned out to be COVID. (I DON'T HAVE COVID.)  I started thinking about the two previous days and trying to list in my mind all of the people that I had been around for more than 15 minutes in the whole day.

I lost count. 

I've followed my own advice of wearing a mask, washing my hands and staying 6' away from others. However, even at that, I lost count of the people that I had spent more than 15 minutes with. I imagined those people getting a call from the contact tracers. I imagined how they would take the news that they needed to isolate themselves for 14 days.

While the disease is survivable and most do, a few cases in our community will cause additional chaos and inconvenience for a lot of people. Two or three exposures related to school could have everyone returning to remote learning. It is so important that all of us help one another by washing our hands, wearing a mask and making space so that when there are infections, the spread is reduced.

I invite you to take a few minutes to ponder: who have you been with inside of 6' for more than 15 minutes in a full day (with or without a mask) during the last two days? Those are the people who would get a phone call and need to isolate for 14 days if you tested positive today. If you're associated with our schools, we would be one of the phone calls. Hands. Face. Space.

Weekly Briefing 10.16.20

Lewis County Metrics

Reopening Schools

The Board of Directors approved a return to school buildings plan at their meeting on Oct. 15. Lewis County Public Health and Social Services recommended returning elementary students to the buildings no earlier than October 19, middle school no earlier than November 16 and high school no earlier than December 14. 

Toledo Elementary will return 2nd and 3rd grade students to the building on October 26. Grades 1, 4 and 5 will return on November 2. All grades will operate on a half-day/ half-class schedule in order to be able to maintain physical distancing between students. Food service will be grab and go to be eaten at home. We're not able to maintain social distance for all in the cafeteria and we want the classrooms to be mask on at all times. For detailed information regarding return to TES, watch for communications from the school. 

Some have asked why we aren't returning all to TES on October 19. We are still working out how to maintain cohorts of students when we have so many programs that mix students (Special Education, interventions, and specialists). We also want to be sure that our screening protocols are routine as we increase the number of students in the building. Finally, we want to be prepared to return to remote instruction quickly if we're required to do that.

Toledo Middle School has been working with students with disabilities on campus since the beginning of the school year. This is because many of those students do not benefit from remote instruction and their specific disabilities can't be addressed remotely. We have identified an additional group of students who need special supports and will be bringing them to the building in cohorts of 5 beginning on Oct. 26. On December 1, the new trimester will begin and we'll transition to our full hybrid model at TMS. For specifics on that plan, watch for communications from the school that will detail days and times as well as food service and other details.

We've become concerned that members of the Class of 2021 (Seniors) are disengaging from their studies. This places their diploma at risk. Beginning December 1, we'll begin bringing seniors back to the building for instruction and supervision. 

Ventilation at THS has never been good and is one of the reasons we needed to build the new school. Construction has added dust to the mix of air quality issues and, in spite of air purifiers, bringing all students to the building right now would not be safe or healthy. For this reason, we plan to bring grades 9-11 to THS in mid-January when the new classrooms, gym and locker rooms are completed. In February, all of the new addition should be complete and students will benefit from the improved ventilation.

As we bring students back to our buildings for in-person instruction, I'm asking everyone in our community to support our efforts. With 140 cases per 100,000 population, Lewis County is the most active county in Western Washington right now. Schools that have brought students back to the buildings have had to return to remote learning. Thurston County with 61 cases per 100,000 has chosen to pause their return to school plans for two weeks to be sure that their case rates stay below 75. We haven't been below 75 cases since July. Toledo is remote enough that, if we are diligent, we can pull this off. If we are not, we will experience significant difficulties. Wear a mask. Wash your hands. Stay 6' distant from others. 

Weekly Briefing 10.9.20

Lewis County Metrics

You'll note that this week, cases have again increased to the highest level since the onset of the pandemic. Only 7 counties in Washington have higher case loads. 

Return to School

Our Kindergarteners (THS Class of 2032) began on-campus instruction this week. Mrs. Bacon reports that they "own the school". They know how to ride the bus, get their screening and temperature checks, sit in the right spot in the cafeteria and go to class on time. They wear their masks without any difficulties or reminders all day- including recess. Mrs. Bacon says they are one of the most self-reliant groups she's had in recent memory. Parents- you've done a great job getting your kids ready for this adventure.

TES staff and faculty will meet today to develop consensus on the next steps in bringing students back to the building. I've told them that we need to do one or two grades at a time and give some space in between each new group. We'll continue with half-days on campus and half-days remote in order to accommodate all students on campus. The board will be considering our recommendations at their meeting on 10/15.

I am recommending to the board that we bring our TMS students to the building on Dec. 1. This is the first day of the new trimester. I'm also recommending that the Class of 2021 return to the building in some fashion the same day. We're becoming concerned that our seniors are disengaging and may have difficulties graduating this year unless we intervene. 

Food Service

Remember that two meals each day are available to all children ages 0-18 through the end of December. There is no charge for these meals. You do not have to qualify and they are available Monday-Friday. Order online using the order form on our website. You can pick up meals at TES or one of the 3 delivery sites in the district. Many families reported that this helped with their grocery bills last spring. We're concerned because we aren't getting as many requests for meals now as we did before.

New Requirements

We received more new guidance from Labor and Industries, the Governor's office and WIAA this week. L&I provided us with new regulations related to PPE while the Governor and WIAA revised requirements for athletics. We're in the process of aligning our practices to these new rules.

Weekly Briefing 10.2.20

 

Current Lewis County COVID-19 Statistics

You'll note that while case rates are down for this two-week rolling average, the case rate is expected to increase in the next weeks based on current cases that will contribute to future averages. Again, the rate continues to climb. LC PHSS reported this week that many of the cases are coming from congregate living and treatment facilities in the county. This is troubling for us as schools are a "congregate facility". Remember too, that as Fall deepens into Winter, we'll all be spending more time indoors. Cold and flu season is upon us and a third wave of COVID is predicted worldwide. Can't stress it often enough that we need everyone's help in reducing the rate of infection in our county so that we don't have to retreat from on-campus instruction.

Kindergarten

Our thanks to the volunteer "students" who came to help us test our system. We received many compliments on our preparedness and also some great ideas on how we can improve. We'll be bringing our Kinders to school on Monday as planned and we're looking forward to getting back to regular order soon.

Lewis County Public Health Recommendations

Just after I posted last week's update, LC PHSS issued a new recommendation. Dr. Wood advises we should consider bringing the rest of elementary students back to the building no earlier than October 19. She goes on to recommend a return of grades 6-8 no earlier than November 16 and grades 9-12 after Dec. 14. I'll be requesting authority to follow those recommendations at our Oct. 15 board meeting. 

Even though we can bring students back quickly, it is our plan to continue to "dial up" our return. What this means is that we would bring a couple of grades back to TES after Oct. 19 and then wait a week or so before bringing the rest back. This gives everyone time to settle in to new procedures and allows us to make sure that we can maintain distance, masks and hand washing with an increased number of people in the building.

For TMS, November 16 is just 8 instructional days before the end of the trimester. We think it may be best if students finish the trimester and start the new one in the building with a new schedule. 

One of the reasons we needed a new high school was that the ventilation in the building and the fresh air exchange was not good. This becomes even more important now with the virus. While we still think it is wisest to wait to return THS students to the building after the new classroom areas are finished, we're becoming worried about our seniors and their grades and engagement. We're thinking about bringing those students back to the building at the beginning of the new trimester.

You'll no doubt notice that other districts are returning to their buildings more rapidly than I recommend. Given our current case rates and in comparison to other districts in the state with similar case rates, I think that our return to the buildings is quite aggressive. While we're prepared to switch quickly from on-campus to remote learning, we don't think that is good for students or families to have such schedule changes. That's why we want to "dial up" our return.

Athletics and Facilities

Athletic practices have begun again in modified form and with screening, temperature checks and sanitation between cohort workouts. All of these are necessary for us to provide athletic programming for our athletes. All sports are able to do these workouts. In a week or two, we'll begin allowing extracurricular clubs to meet in similar groupings with the same precautions.

This means that our facilities are again available to public groups who have completed facility use forms and provided required insurance documentation. We will give priority to our school programs of course, but youth athletics, community and religious organizations are invited to submit their requests. All groups, including our athletes, are responsible for cleaning and disinfecting the space following their use. With the exception of religious organizations, groups are limited to 10 at a time with distance, masks and hand washing. We require groups to observe these restrictions and may revoke permissions if it is determined that they are not being observed. Our first responsibility is to the children and staff of our schools who will be working in the environment. It is critical that we maintain the health of our interior spaces.

What's Next?

No one can predict where this will go from day to day, but our team is following the metrics in our county and the ever-changing recommendations from our public health, regulatory and scientific leadership as well as listening to our parents, students and community when it comes to making decisions. We  are continuing to work to accommodate the specific needs of children and families and are having quite a bit of success in doing so.

We're still attempting to contact some families who either can't or won't respond to our calls, letters, emails and visits. If you know someone who is struggling, please help us contact them so we can help their situation.

Don't forget that I do "Tuesday Talk" on Tuesdays at 6 p.m. on zoom Click here I don't do any presenting. Typically, I just ask what is on people's minds. Sometimes, they want to know about school reopening. Sometimes we talk about construction at THS and I've even done some tech support about Google Classroom. In addition, if you'd like to see what Google Classroom is all about, email me and I'll get you signed up for my "Parent Partners" class online. 

As you navigate the upcoming week, I hope you'll look for the things that we can all be thankful for in Toledo: a supportive community, a scenic place to call home, a place with resourceful and caring neighbors and a "can do" spirit. Remember to support our local businesses and as always, spread kindness like butter.

Weekly Briefing 9.25.20

 Current Lewis County COVID conditions

Cases in Lewis County increased during this two-week rolling average to the highest since the onset of this record. For comparison, Cowlitz County is 33, Pierce County is 56.1, Thurston County is 22.7, Pacific County is 78.6, Gray's Harbor is 169.9 and Yakima County is 87.5. Only six counties have higher case rates than Lewis. 

As I mentioned in last week's blog, Lewis County Public Health is recommending that schools in the county consider allowing Kindergarteners to attend school on campus. This recommendation is intended to balance the risk of infection with the impact of not being in school for our youngest students.

Kindergarten

On Monday, Sept. 28, we will use volunteer adults as "Kindergarten students" to test our school opening protocols. Their "parents" will complete a morning attestation that the kids have no COVID symptoms and are clear to come to school. They'll be greeted at the bus or parent drop zone by staff who will take their temps and make sure they've completed the attestation. Those whose parents didn't attest by phone will be screened by staff. Students will go to breakfast to test our distancing in the cafeteria and then travel to classrooms by cohort. We'll do recess, hand washing, and briefly do everything including dismissal in a two-hour period. Our goal is to surface things that we didn't consider so that we can address those during the next week. 

On Monday, October 5, we'll welcome our Kindergarten students to school. We'll be teaching each cohort on campus for half-day. This will keep cohorts to 10 or less students. The a.m. group will learn on campus and the p.m. group will learn at home in the morning. In the afternoon, the p.m. group will learn on campus and the a.m. group will learn at home. On Fridays, all cohorts will learn at home all day. Friday is the day that teachers will use to prepare the at-home lessons.

We are watching to see how this configuration works and using lessons we learn from this to guide our return to school planning for the remaining TES grades. When it is safe to do so, we want to be able to move quickly to return students to on-campus instruction.

Athletics

We will end WIAA's mandated no-coach period on Monday and be able to host modified practices for all athletics in the ramp up to Winter season. We plan to begin athletic practices in keeping with all of the Dept. of Health and WIAA guidelines on Tuesday Sept. 29. Athletes will work in cohorts of 10 or less. We weighed the value to students of being able to have some physical outlet with the risk of infection and determined that if we hold to the guidelines, the physical activity will boost the morale of our students and community. 

Extracurricular activities such as clubs and groups will begin meeting outside of the school day in groups of 10 or less as soon as we're confident that we're doing a good job with our athletic teams. 

Your Role

Lewis County has one of the most aggressive return-to-school recommendations of any county in Washington. As you can see from the current data, we're also one of the most active counties in the state for cases. In order to continue on this aggressive return-to-school plan, we all need to work together to reduce cases. The only weapons we have to fight the virus are masks, hand washing and social distancing. We all need to use all of these weapons in the fight against this virus.

Large indoor gatherings without masks and close proximity to others repeatedly end up increasing cases. In our county, we see this in congregate living (convalescent centers, correctional facilities). Schools are congregate settings. In order to reduce the likelihood of a spread of the disease in school, we need to reduce the spread of the disease in our community at large so that it doesn't come to school.

This virus has created the fourth largest mass casualty event in U.S. history. Only the Civil War, WWII and the 1918 Pandemic have killed more Americans. This virus has done it's damage in less than a quarter of the time that we experienced in the two wars mentioned.

The Path Forward

It is our desire to safely return to campus as soon as possible. Research on the effectiveness of distance education demonstrates that it is less effective than in-person instruction. While our teachers are using techniques to increase the effectiveness, the research is clear (Hattie, 2009)* 

In WWII, families did without things like butter, gasoline, and coffee in order to support the troops fighting overseas. There were blackout curtains and towns would turn off all lights at night in order to protect against enemy bombers. Americans endured years of self-deprivation in order to prevail against a common enemy. We are currently in a similar fight and what we're being asked to do is minimal in comparison to our ancestors. I have been encouraged this week to see people who I know hate wearing masks, question whether they are necessary and feel uncomfortable wearing their mask in spite of the discomfort. I interpret this as good citizenship and care for their neighbors. On behalf of all of us at TSD who are working hard to serve children remotely and also bring them back to school, we thank you for your efforts.

*An effect size of .4 means that for one year's effort, a student will make one year's growth. We look for strategies that have greater than .4. Distance Education has a .14 effect size based on an analysis of 1,143 studies.

Weekly Briefing 9.18.20

 In the interest of keeping our community informed, I plan to provide a weekly briefing on developments related to our COVID response and a return to school. In addition, I'm converting my Tuesday night Parent Partners Office Hours to a general Q&A related to our school district. Patrons are invited to log on to that meeting on Tuesday evenings at 6 p.m. for a time to chat about issues related to the school district and our work to bring students back to the classroom.

Tuesday Office Hours 6-7 p.m. (click here to access the meeting)

Lewis County COVID metrics today

Following a recommendation from Lewis County Public Health and Social Services, TSD has begun considering bringing Kindergarteners to school in-person. We currently have 57 students enrolled in this grade and anticipate 54 will attend. The Response Team comprised of principals, transportation, maintenance and operations, School Nurse, counselor, Athletic Director, District Office secretary and me will meet with the Kindergarten faculty on Monday to review our plans and make adjustments to meet current conditions. These plans begin with the student and family prior to the bus or parent transporting and end with the child's return to their home at the end of the day. These plans include health screening, temperature checks, confirmation of all parent contact information, masking, social distancing, cleaning and disinfection, hand washing, recess protocols, food service and toileting. We're working to "pressure test" our plans to see where the weaknesses are prior to students being on campus. 

This work now is crucial to the return of other students. By preparing with a smaller group of students, we learn how to best prepare for a larger group. In addition, we become confident and practiced in our protocols at school and will be in a better position to keep our kids and families safe.

Regardless of our best efforts, you need to know that there will be cases of COVID. Part of our planning includes being able to respond to those cases in a way that is appropriate and respects the individual's privacy. We have letters prepared to inform those who need to know when there is a positive case. We also will be cooperating with contact tracing efforts by Lewis County Public Health. It is important to note that a single case does not mean that we're closing school or even the classroom. We will follow public health directives in all cases.

Athletics

Yesterday, Public Health rescinded their order regarding professional and youth athletics and deferred to the directions of the Washington State Dept. of Health and the Governor's Safe Start initiative. This has nothing to do with interscholastic athletics programs in schools. This only relates to youth sports (like Little League and Youth Soccer) and pro athletics (like the Seahawks and the Mariners). 

TSD's connection to youth sports is through our venues. TSD venues will remain closed to public use until students are able to return to school and our students can use the venues.

Board Meetings

The board is currently conducting their meetings via videoconferencing. The Dept. of Health limits gatherings to 10 people. The Governor confirmed this in his proclamation that reduced Phase 3 gatherings to 10 (from 50). By the time we collect 5 board members, the superintendent, secretary and the people who are reporting to the board, we have 10 in the room. Any public members interested in the meeting would need to be in a room down the hall watching on a video feed. We felt that since we'd be doing video for the public, it was safer to do video for all. 

I've had questions about public comments and why  we only accept written comments at video meetings. Connections on the internet are troublesome. There is often delays and sometimes, connections fail in the middle of a presentation. The meeting either has to wait for the person to return (not always possible) or go ahead and circle back later. It was felt last spring that taking written public comment only allowed for more and better input to the board than was possible with video. Since this has been our practice in the past, it would be unfair to those who wanted to speak but were denied in past months to allow people to present verbally now. Public comment and a more conversational interaction is expected when we're able to return to regular order.

Talk to Us

Every time a parent or student has had a problem this year and has asked for an accommodation for that problem (short of returning to the building), our team has been able to find a way to resolve the issue. However, we have had no luck solving problems that we don't know about or that are shared on social media. If your child is struggling, contact their teacher and their principal. Think about what you'd like to see done differently and what's causing the problem and ask for help. You'll be glad you did.

I haven't heard a single person say, "I'm sure glad we're doing school this way now. It's so much better. We should have been doing it like this all along." If you don't like what's happening right now, you're in good company and you need to know that we're all working for the day that we can stop doing school this way. In the meantime, we're all committed to serving you and supporting you to the best of our ability. And that is considerable.

Best for good health,

Chris Rust

Superintendent

Distance Learning and Reopening Schools update

 I'm not going to sugarcoat it. We are in some of the most difficult times that any of us have experienced. We are all working harder and with less certainty that our work will do any good. We are all trying to make the best of a difficult situation and the best isn't nearly good enough for any of us. While we all want our children to be in school in regular order, we also want all of our friends, neighbors, colleagues and family members to come through this pandemic alive and without lasting physical, neurological, emotional or mental injuries. We are, all of us, fearful of our capacity to meet this challenge. On top of all of that, we're existing in an environment filled with smoke that causes us to feel more anxious.

As of September 16, 2020 at 1:30 p.m. here is the case data for Washington State:

The state is at 80.5 cases per 100,000. This is a two week rolling average that takes into account new cases only and does not consider recoveries, hospitalizations or deaths. I think about this like the RPMs on a tachometer in my car. 25 per 100,000 would be idling. When people say, "COVID will always be with us." this is what they're talking about. Not 0 cases, 25/100,000 or less.

Here is Lewis County alone:

Lewis County is currently at 75.5 cases per 100,000. This is great news because earlier this month, we were at 120. When cases began to decline, Lewis County Public Health, in collaboration with educators and pediatricians, determined that it was safe to begin looking at bringing Kindergarteners back to the schools. Toledo is currently working to do just that as are all other districts in the county. The problem is the projected cases for the future.

When we look at where we are (the blue line) it appears that we're making progress at reducing our cases. But when you look at what is projected for the rolling average taking into account the number of new cases that don't show up in the 14 day data point, we are predicted to be 125.8 for the period of Aug 27-Sep 10 (gray dotted line). State COVID data Lewis County currently has the 10th highest rate of the 39 counties in the state.

Other data looks promising: the infection rate (R Naught value) is currently less than 1 (this means that every person who is positive for COVID is infecting only one or fewer people before they find out they are infected. Measles is 14), hospital beds remain available and the number of COVID patients in hospital is below the "idle speed" of our "engine". 

Our efforts in the county have been about "dialing up" reentry to schools so that we're sure of our new practices of distancing, cohorting, transporting, cleaning, disinfecting and teaching about masks and hand washing. Our concern is that if we reenter too quickly, we'll be forced to close again. Our other concern is that if staff become infected, we aren't sure we'll have substitutes to take their place and that those substitutes will have the new skills needed to teach both on campus and remotely.

Right now, we're taking the recommendation of LC Public Health and planning to return Kindergarten to TES full time Monday through Friday. All but three of our families have indicated they'll send their children. We don't have a date certain right now, but it will be after Sept. 28. 

We're watching Mossyrock and Boistfort to see what their outcomes are in the next three weeks. We're hopeful that they will not have any negative outcomes and that this will be an indication to the rest of us on how we might reenter the buildings. We're also gearing ourselves for cases in our district. We expect that there will be infections, quarantines and sickness. We're praying that there are no lasting outcomes or deaths. Remember that viruses can live in our bodies for our whole lives. The Chicken Pox we had as children is the same virus that attacks us in old age as shingles. The cold sores we got as kids stay with us for our whole lives and create cold sores later under stress. We still don't know what this virus is capable of. 

In the meantime, the staff, teachers, administrators and all of us at Toledo School District have never worked harder on behalf of children than we are this year. We are grateful to all those parents and community members who have sent us words of encouragement and support. Here's what we know:

We are putting out schedules and assignments each Monday by 9 a.m. for the week so that families can plan when they'll do their school work. We're engaging students via videoconferencing software (zoom) more than ever. 69% of our students have perfect attendance so far this year. I hear often from families that while this isn't ideal, it is becoming manageable. I hear from teachers that they are beginning to get the hang of this. The happiest families are those who stay in close touch with their teachers and principals. When there is a problem, they surface that problem along with solutions that might work better and work together with our staff to make it better. 

I have a Parent Partner class online where I do lessons on how our learning management system works as well as information about how to support your child in an online environment. On Tuesdays at 6 p.m. I host an online "office hours" where parents can ask questions and get instruction on  specific concerns. We've had three such sessions. Tuesday Office Hours Click on this link to join up next Tuesday at 6.

Finally, we hear parents who think we should return to the buildings immediately. We also hear parents who are concerned about that. We hear staff who think we should return to the buildings immediately and we hear staff who are concerned about that. All of us want to return to regular order. All of us. We can always commit to you is that we will make decisions based on what is best for kids. We may differing views on what is best for kids, but that will always be our focus. Our mission remains the same- provide opportunities and meaningful experiences to empower students to achieve their goals. Each child, each day, each classroom. We are committed to fulfilling this mission. We are committed to your children's success.

If you have questions or want your voice included in the conversation, I invite you to call or email me. You may also email a public comment for inclusion on the board agenda. Until we meet again, I wish you and your family good health and safety.

May 29, 2020 1 p.m.

Each week, we take more steps toward creating a better version of the Continuous Learning model that we've been using. During the Community Forum on Wednesday this week, I heard that parents would prefer a weekly summary of what students can expect to see for the week (we'll call this a "weekly drop") and that having a single online platform (rather than several separate programs) would be helpful. Our team has settled on the use of Class Dojo as the central "home base" for instruction for K-3 and Google Classroom for 4-12. We'll be using Zoom as our platform for group meetings and also be providing video lessons that students can view. Everything will be accessed through the "Home base" (Dojo or Google Classroom).

Our goal is to create a system that is easily managed by students and places less and less reliance on parents for support as we move along. We're also planning to provide support for parent learning with these platforms so that parents can more easily interact.

Many of us are planning to engage in professional development through the summer in order to be ready to support children and families in the Fall in whatever way is necessary. We're imagining that we'll be in a system that includes some face-to-face with protocols for safety and some online interaction. Depending upon circumstances, we may be prevented from having face-to-face interaction, so we want to be able to provide high-quality instruction at a distance. Our motto is "prepared, not scared", so whatever circumstances come our way, we want to be prepared.

Lewis County is in phase 2 of the Governor's reopening plan, however that plan does not address school operations. We are still precluded from using our facilities to provide any recreational, social or educational services under the Governor's proclamation 20-08. I've asked for clarification from the State that that is their intent and I'm hoping to hear back next week or during the Governor's next briefing. In the meantime, TSD may not use our gyms, fields and other venues for any activities.

We've heard that most parents are looking forward to their children coming back into the school building and picking up their studies. We've also heard concern about disinfecting and protocols for safety. Our team is working right now on establishing our protocols guided by the experts at the CDC and the Department of Health. We're preparing our order for PPE and sanitizing supplies as well as creating our plans for adapting our buildings to our new circumstances. As these are created, we'll keep you informed.

Friday 7:30 a.m.Grades, Wellness

Grades

One of the most difficult decisions we've faced both in Toledo and the State is how to assign grades for this trimester. There were so many issues related to this that OSPI stepped into territory that is usually left to local decisions, to provide guidance and direction. In a communication earlier this month, Chris Reykdal stated that our primary directive is to "do no harm". Toward that end, he directed that no student would receive an "F" or "No Credit" for work they've done during this term. In addition, no student could have a grade reduced. OSPI gave us options of offering "Incompletes" or A-D grades and any combination of those.

Prior to the direction from OSPI, Seattle made the decision to record an A or incomplete for all students in their system. Incompletes would carry no credit and would need to have a plan attached that would allow the student to remove the incomplete and replace it with a passing grade at a later time. Other districts have chosen every option allowed by OSPI. The most common system is A-D+ Incomplete.

In Toledo, our team talked about equity for our students. Some students are in circumstances where parents are available to help and they have reliable internet access and devices. Their family may not have had anyone become affected by the virus or by disruption to income or business. Those students will not have the same experience as students who need to help in the family business, don't have reliable internet access or are home alone during the day.

In addition, our team felt that while we got off to a strong start and our families report that they are pleased with the service they're receiving, this is new work for all of us and we're not providing everything we could if students were with us for 6 hours daily. Our team felt that it would be wrong to judge students based on our current ability to deliver instruction and assess learning.

Because of this and many other issues, the decision was made that we would track progress as we ordinarily would, but at the end of the term, we would change all grades for students K-5 to a "3" and all grades for students grades 6-12 to an "A".

We are not going to use the "Incomplete" grade. Our team felt that this was just delaying a burden until a future date uncertain and that it wouldn't be helpful to our students or families.

No one is going to give any meaning to these grades. Colleges, military, NCAA and scholarship committees have all stated that these grades are not going to be factored into any decisions that will affect admission or acceptance. We are required to record some mark on the transcript that will also  have a designation indicating it was recorded during this time.

I've spoken to parents who are concerned that their child will disengage because they're "getting an A anyway." Students don't work for grades. Students work for approval of their family. Parents use grades as a way to determine their satisfaction with their child's effort. There are other ways to measure your satisfaction: by completed assignments, connections to teachers, time spent learning and any number of other ways connected to school. By staying up-to-date on your child's performance through contact with your child's teacher and through Family Access online, you can still motivate your child to continue to engage in learning just as you have in the past. I'm imagining a dialogue that would go something like this,

Child: "Why should I do anything? I'm getting straight A's anyway."
Parent: "I'm really not interested in your final grade right now. I expect you to work on your assignments just like I always have. Missing assignments aren't acceptable in our family. You can do better. 
Child: "Okay, I'll do it this afternoon."
Parent: "I'll check on your progress with your teacher tomorrow by email. If you haven't completed at least one Math assignment by then, there will be no video games until your teacher lets me know that you've completed one assignment."

Another scenario involves asking questions, listening to the answers and then asking more probing questions. Questions such as:

"What is the most surprising thing you learned today?"
"What is one thing you did today that was fun?"
"What is one problem that you solved today?"
"What is a problem that you'd like to see solved in the future?"

Wellness
Loss is difficult. Whether its a family member, a job, a prized possession or a way of life, loss brings feelings of grief. There are some predictable stages of grief. According to Kubler Ross and Kessler, there are five stages: denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. We are all experiencing loss right now and can predict that we will all experience all of these stages. They won't all come at once and they won't come in order, but they will work through. Like the weather in Toledo, if you don't like it now, wait five minutes and it will change.

It is important that we're sensitive to these emotions in ourselves and also that we watch for them in our kids. Like the weather, it will pass. Also like the weather, it can do damage if we don't prepare for it. The State has put together a list of resources that can help with grief and the losses that have caused it. I encourage you and your family to reach out to these people sooner rather than later. These are the resources that our staff are drawing on for referrals. Resources

There is nothing more important right now than your mental, emotional and physical health. Please be well.

Changes to the District Calendar- Video

Click Here.

Wednesday 4/29 8 a.m.

Grading

We've received some new guidance from OSPI this past week. Of most significance are the directions on grading. There are 295 school districts in Washington State and while most of us use a traditional A-F grading scale, there are many that do not. During the closure, school districts were developing their own grading procedures. At the high school level, grades have significance for scholarships, college admission, college athletics, military entrance, and can influence employment. Many of us were asking OSPI for clear guidance on expectations.

OSPI responded by saying that districts are to provide a letter grade, but may not issue a No Credit (NC), F, No Pass, or allow a student's existing grade to decrease from the level it was on March 13. Prior to this guidance, THS had determined it would utilize a Credit/No Credit system. The OSPI order does not allow this system. Our District Leadership Team met last week to discuss the options:
A, AB, ABC, ABCD. We also discussed using an incomplete. (The grade decrease provision doesn't impact us because our new trimester began on March 16, so no one had a grade that would be impacted.)

The conversation about A-D centered around equity and our teachers' ability to distinguish between A work and B work or C work during this closure. Not every student has internet access. Some of our teachers have unreliable internet access and phone service at their homes.  Some students are working in the family business right now, some students are babysitting younger siblings, some families have sickness or are coping with grief. There are so many issues that prevent us from having a level playing field for all that the team did not feel it was appropriate to differentiate between A, B, C, and D. (This was why we initially chose the "Credit" grade earlier.)

The team determined that we would record an "A" for all grade 6-12 students who were engaged in continuous learning during this time. Transcripts in Washington will note that grades issued in June were issued during the pandemic. We do not believe that this is a gift. We believe that an A under these circumstances is the best way to do no harm to our students and to support them going forward. Students in grades K-5 will receive a 3 on their report card for many of the same reasons.

Some students are choosing not to engage in continuous learning for a variety of reasons. Those students are not providing enough evidence for us to assign a grade. Those students will receive a mark of "Incomplete" on their transcript. We will enter into conversations and plan with those students about how they would like to remove the incomplete mark and replace it with a grade at a future time. Those students will receive credit only when that incomplete is removed.

I've spoken with parents who are concerned that their child won't put forward their best effort if they know they'll receive an A. They are concerned that the provision of an A will cause their child to disengage. Teachers will continue to record marks for assignments and engagement in Skyward. These marks are visible to parents through Family Access. You can continue to monitor your child's work and encourage them to perform at levels that are expected in your home for the remainder of the school year, knowing that on or about June 19, an A or 3 will be recorded manually by the teacher. Students are most likely to respond to their parents' encouragement to improve performance. Students who choose to disengage now will receive an incomplete and the opportunity to remove that mark later. (This is not recommended.)

OSPI requires that we continue to engage students and monitor the degree to which each student is engaged as well as our efforts to do so. While grades are one motivator, they should not be the most important. Grades are intended to be a report on the extent of a student's learning. We want our students to be focused on learning, not grades.

Fall and School Opening

We are currently planning to begin school according to our published calendar for 2020-21, however it is possible that the Governor will make decisions that impact those plans. Until we have more certainty, we encourage everyone to be flexible and "light on your feet" as we may need to make adjustments.

Friday Night Lights

I've heard from several people in our community that they thought that this event was a great way to honor seniors and bring the community together, they were disappointed that those participating in Friday Night Lights did not observe social distancing and protective measures during the event.

I think that people are missing one another so deeply that the temptation to ignore social distance is too great. For this reason, all of the events that TSD will be involved with going forward will avoid the possibility of breaching CDC guidelines and the Governor's orders. There are too many people who are at risk for COVID-19 to do otherwise.

Office Hours

I've begun a practice of opening a zoom chat from Noon to 1 p.m. during the week for people to stop by and chat, ask questions, make suggestions, etc. I encourage you to participate by going to:

https://zoom.us/j/91787775770?pwd=RnhITTBoZUQzRjhYbjBCY2xPVTVyZz09

This isn't a private conversation as others may be present. If you need a private conversation, please email me at crust@toledoschools.us or call 360.200.1459 during business hours and I'll make arrangements for you.