School plans for in-person classes

POMEROY–The Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) has issued official guidance for reopening Washington schools for the 2020-2021 school year, specifying employee and student safety requirements for reopening schools during the COVID-19 pandemic which mandates school boards to adopt and submit reopening plans” for the fall.

“My goal is to bring all students and staff back into our classrooms so we can get back to teaching and learning while staying safe,” Supt. Rachel Gwinn said. She would be posting the reopening plan and sharing with the community by Thursday, July 30, 2020. “This is an ongoing, working document,” and the requirements are dictated by the State Department of Health and OSPI.

The Pomeroy School District (PSD) reviewed and approved the District Reopening Plan, Resolution No. 297 on July 27, 2020. The Resolution states that on June 11, 2020, “the reopening plan requires monitoring and possible revision” and that “the District will revise and update the reopening plan as needed.”

The PSD Reopening Plan states that the “PSD’s goal is to reopen for in-person instruction for the fall.” It further states that “the district has crafted a plan that allows us to respond quickly to changing local, regional, state and national conditions.”

The reopening plan uses a three-color scheme, each color reflecting the changing conditions caused by the pandemic. Green: New Normal Operations is the plan that the PSD intends to use when school opens on August 31, 2020. All students will attend school full time in the classroom, while the school follows the guidelines set forth by the Department of Health to limit the risks and spread of COVID-19. That means that six-feet social distancing will be used “where possible and reasonable,” and masks, facial coverings, or face shields will be required, when appropriate.

Other measures taken will include daily health screenings, routine cleaning and sanitizing, required hand washing throughout the day and sanitizer will be made available. Students will follow designated entry/exits procedures for each class, will have assigned and spaced seating and staggered recess times. In addition, students will use personal water bottles instead of water fountains, subject to education on preventive measures and symptoms of the virus, and clear communication with families. Academically, continued traditional grading and accountability will be required.

Lunch will be sack lunches eaten in the classrooms. Breakfast will also be served in sacks, served and consumed in the cafeteria “with identified eating spaces.” For students who ride the bus, there will be one child per seat, except siblings may sit together, and spaced with one empty seat between them. The bus will be loaded from the rear to the front, and unloaded from the front to the rear. Buses will be cleaned and sanitized daily.

If conditions require a more restrictive setting, the next step is Yellow: “Learning with Caution.” Students would attend on alternate days, or some other modified schedule, and distance learning would occur part-time at home. This plan would be appropriate if positive COVID-19 cases occurred in certain classes or groups, and a complete closure is not required. The only variation from the Green plan would be that students would be “learning at home using Google classroom that provides instruction videos and daily assignments” part of the day.

Should the district be required to close the school completely due to a State “Stay at Home” order, then the Red: Distance Learning at Home and Stay Safe plan would go into effect for all students. It would require daily attendance online, and would have some of the structure of a regular school day with online instruction. The staff would be required to be on campus to provide instruction and support.