Could more Folsom schools re-open for in-person learning by March?

Yet another new guideline from the California Department of Public Health regarding opening schools has the Folsom Cordova Unified School Board pursuing a possible return to hybrid, in-person instruction for all secondary schools by next month. Released last Wednesday night, new guidance added allows school districts that were partially opened earlier this school year with a phased-in reopening plan to petition the California Department of Public Health for permission to continue its re-opening plan. Folsom Cordova Unified School Board had opened elementary schools in November just as Sacramento went back into the purple tier. Superintendent Dr. Sarah Koligian submitted the letter of intent last Thursday that the district was interested in reopening secondary schools and verified it was received by the California Department of Public Health. She estimated hearing from the Department of Public Health by next week as to what the department's safety guidelines would be to reopen schools. The district must comply with everything the department recommends before schools can reopen. The district has already done plenty of safety modifications to get classrooms ready, including the cleaning of all HVAC systems and the installation of MERV-13 filters. Hand sanitizers and PPE (personal protective equipment) are available in each classroom, all common areas are scheduled to be wiped down and disinfected throughout the day, desks have been moved six feet apart in the classrooms and Plexiglas has been installed where the six feet of physical distance is not allowed, among other measures. The only items Chief Operations Officer Matt Washburn said would not be done by March 1 would be the third-party verifications of the cleaning and repairs done to the HVAC units and the dampers being opened in all the high school rooms. He said that work would be done by March 15. If the district complies with everything the California Department of Public Health mandates, schools could open immediately, even in the purple tier, if the county is at a case rate of fewer than 25 cases per 100,000, which current metrics show it's at 24.8 per 100,000. In a best-case scenario, students could be back in the classroom as early as the first week of March. "If everything proceeds on track, thinking about what's in the best interest of our middle school and high school students and teachers, it makes sense to make that change at the grading period, the upcoming trimester change, which is March 1 and the upcoming fourth quarter change, which is March 15," Koligian said. "It would be the least disruptive if we have all the other health and safety approvals in place. Taken as good news from a board that wants to get all students back in the classrooms as quickly and safely as possible, several teachers in the district called in during public comment and didn't share in the enthusiasm. Some are scared of the virus; catching it, spreading it or even dying from it, and said the district should wait until teachers and staff have a chance to be vaccinated before returning to in-class instruction. Others were not pleased with the district's recommendation to send all teachers back to the classroom Feb. 22 to get acclimated with the new technology and equipment before students arrive in what could be the near future. Others simply say it's not worth the risk to go back to the classroom because there's no way to guarantee anyone's safety, despite safety precautions that the district has taken. Although vaccines are not required as a prerequisite to re-open schools, the district received some good news this week, as it was chosen to host four immunization clinics on Feb. 20 and 27 and March 20 and 27. "These are soft dates, as we have to make sure supply and demand can be met," said Kerri Kaye from the district's health services. "The clinics will be open to all of phase 1A and the folks in phase 1B that are already open; 65 years old and older, law enforcement and first responders. We're anticipating soon that Sacramento County will be able to open phase 1B to educators as well. The clinics will be by appointment only." Said Dr. Olivia Kasirye, Sacramento County Public Health Officer, "Reopening of schools is not predicated on teachers being vaccinated. In the bigger picture, it helps us get where we want to go, which is to reduce the number of cases so that we can have the students back in schools and we can go back to our regular lives but it is not a prerequisite to opening schools." Board members were pleased to see a path open to get its students back in the classroom. "Bringing all of secondary back in the hybrid model is not a perfect option but it's a better option than what's been happening and it's a step in the right direction and it's really important that we're taking it," board member Tim Hooey said. Added Board President Ed Short, "We should focus on getting all the kids back. There's an array of reasons why; social emotional, we know it's all bad. It's not working. That said, we need to get it back when it's safe. We need to make sure all of our stakeholders are involved in that decision and that includes our teachers. They're concerned with air quality. We are making sure that happens. Teachers need childcare and there are some logistics to that. They're really concerned about safety. We should partner with them because our kids are the most important but our teachers are in the classroom with our kids. It's a symbiotic relationship and goes hand in hand. We need to work together. We should strive altogether to get as a team, unified together and make sure we go back as safe as possible. We're all in this together. "The virus is a dangerous virus. It's a scary virus. It's not going to go away but the data shows that schools are not super spreaders. We have safe data showing what we are doing is getting better. We are a success story in the region. Other school districts are looking at us. We're doing it right," Short said. "Let's take advantage of the new waiver, work together toward our safety plans and try to get this done in the most expeditious way possible." Answering a caller's question as to why the school district is pushing to get secondary schools open and students back in the classroom, board member Joshua Hoover answered, "Why are we doing this? Why are we pushing for in-person learning? As a parent, it's very frustrating to continue to hear that question asked in a negative way, as if it is somehow not a worthy goal or if there are somehow no benefits to in-person learning versus distance learning. Why are we pushing for in-person learning? It's hard to count all the reasons. Number one, it's the mental health of our kids. We've known this and everyone has acknowledged this is a constant struggle with distance learning that our kids are fighting with thoughts of suicide, fighting with social isolation, being constantly pulled down. Not only can't they be in school but they can't compete in the sports that they love or see the friends they have or get quality in-person interaction with other people. We're doing this because the academic outcomes of our students matter. The number of students in our district getting D's and F's has tripled in the last year. We're doing this because equity matters. We are seeing achievement gaps between Folsom and Rancho Cordova grow every day that we are not in person. They were already there but they're growing larger because we are not in person. We are doing this because the CDC, our leading health experts that we rely on to lead us, is telling us schools are safer than the community at large. That there is zero evidence of student-to-staff transmission and that vaccines should not be a prerequisite for reopening classrooms, though they need to be a priority. We're doing this because we have shown in our own district that we can do it safely. We've had elementary schools open for months. Our numbers are dropping dramatically, and we have put the necessary protocols in place to make it work. That's why we're doing this. That's why we have a critical responsibility to keep pushing to get our kids back in the classroom because that's what's best for them."