Education leaders address safe school openings

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING: Education leaders on California guidelines for fully and safe school openings for 100% in-person instruction

SACRAMENTO – Education officials today expressed support for California’s guidelines to completely reopen schools for full in-person instruction and the CDC guidelines the state is aligning with:

LK Monroe, Alameda County School Superintendent and CCSESA President: “Our schools are preparing for full in-person instruction right now and our children and staff will be back in classrooms in a few weeks. As the CDPH and education leaders review the CDC’s guidelines for K-12 education, we strongly support the CDC and CDPH’s conclusion that multiple prevention strategies will continue to be needed. The three-foot physical distance standard is difficult for many schools. We want to make sure that we don’t create unnecessary barriers to in-person teaching. The use of face covers, along with other measures such as vaccines, tests, ventilation and hand washing, establishes the balance necessary to get our children back to school. “

“State guidelines strike a balance between security and the need to reopen campuses,” said Edgar Zazueta, senior director of policy and government relations for the Association of California School Administrators. “Requiring masks can help compensate for the loss of social distancing rules. All in all, this is a fair compromise. There will undoubtedly be many families who will be upset that the state continues the mask’s mandate, but other families will be relieved. “

Jim Yovino, Fresno County Schools Superintendent: “Our priority is to have all of our kids come back in person in the fall, as we have been doing since the spring. Layering multiple prevention strategies has worked well for us and allowed us to keep our students and staff safe during this pandemic. We’re now grateful to learn that we won’t have to worry about physical distancing requirements when we return to our campuses this fall if consistent masking guidelines for all ages are followed. We think it’s a small and worthy sacrifice if it means that we can get all of our children together, inside the classroom and in front of a caring adult. “

Daniel Domenech, director of the American Association of School Administrators, called the new guidelines “a scientific guide (to) support school district leaders in their work to ensure that schools are as open as possible to teaching in the classroom. person for the start of the 2021-22 school year.

San Ysidro School District Superintendent Dr. Gina Potter: “As our school district area has experienced one of the highest positive COVID case rates in the state, safety remains our top priority as we reopen schools in the fall. The governor’s unwavering commitment to safety during the pandemic, with continued mask guidance and robust testing and immunization capability, shows his focus on protecting and saving lives in California while fully opening the doors. schools for in-person instruction.

The California Teachers Association also backed the state guidelines, adding that schools should become community immunization centers. “We know that this pandemic is not over, but because of the availability of vaccines and the multiple safety measures put in place and practice, as well as the roadmap provided by scientific guidance, school communities are well positioned to ensure personal safety for students this fall, ”said union spokesperson Lisa Gardiner. “As CTA has always said, learning is best done in person and educators want to be with their students in the classroom.”