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.