By Kayla Hoang & Karen Phan
California Governor Gavin Newsom rolled out a statewide “pandemic plan” on Friday for the reopening of California K-12 schools. The reopening plan mandates that schools in the counties on the state’s COVID-19 monitoring list must stay closed and opt for distance learning.
“Learning remains non-negotiable,” Newsom said at this afternoon’s press conference. “But neither is the safety of all of our cohorts, including our staff, as well as our children.”
In order for schools in counties on the COVID-19 watchlist to reopen, their counties must be off the watchlist for 14 consecutive days, which Newsom called the “stabilization period.”
As of Friday afternoon, 33 counties, including Orange County, are on California’s COVID-19 monitoring list. Orange County was added to the watchlist on June 29 and is experiencing a surge in cases.
One of the requirements of the five-guideline pandemic plan includes “rigorous distance learning,” in which all students have access to devices and connectivity and interact daily with teachers and students.
Students must be assigned “challenging assignments equivalent to in-person classes” and proper accommodations must be made for English language learners and special education students.
The state’s directives for reopening K-12 schools also include guidance for physical reopening. Schools that are able to hold in-person instruction must require all staff and all students in grades 3-12 to wear masks, while students in 2nd grade and below “are encouraged to wear masks or face shields.”
At schools that reopen, staff must be regularly tested. Social distancing between staff and students must be enforced, and there need to be daily symptom checks, hand washing stations, an emphasis on deep sanitation and disinfection, and quarantine protocols for when someone is sick.
In-person instruction closes when there is a confirmed case, according to the pandemic plan. A classroom goes home where there is a confirmed case, and a school goes home when over 5% of the school is positive for COVD-19. A district is expected to close when 25% of schools are closed within a 14-day period.
Several school districts in southern California have adopted distance learning for the fall of the 2020-2021 school year, including the Anaheim, Los Angeles, San Diego and Santa Ana Unified School Districts. The Huntington Beach Union High School District (HBUHSD) has not yet rolled out its reopening plan.
“The health and safety of our students, staff, and community is of the utmost importance,” HBUHSD posted on its social media on Tuesday. “HBUHSD will continue to adhere to the safety measures outlined by the local and state health care agencies, including the use of face coverings and social distancing on our campuses and in our offices.”
HBUHSD superintendent Clint Harwick released an update in response to Newsom’s guidance Friday evening, stating that HBUHSD is in the process of developing instructional models using parent and student input from the district’s 2020-2021 reopening survey. The survey responses can be viewed here.
“As we prepare to begin a new school year on September 2, HBUHSD will continue to work diligently and collaboratively towards a safe reopening of schools to in-person and online instruction as health conditions allow,” Harwick wrote. “Our commitment is to continue to keep our students, staff, and community safe.
Click here to read the full school reopening guidance from the state.
Emily Doan contributed to this article.
This article was updated on July 17 at 5:40 p.m. to correct the date in which Orange County was placed on the COVID-19 monitoring list, and to include Harwick’s letter.
