What coronavirus-related school closures, absences could mean for local districts
As COVID-19 spreads, Washington schools may find themselves contemplating closing their doors in hopes of preventing the spread of the virus. Local school districts already are reporting getting calls from concerned parents who want to keep their children home.
So far, the closure closest to Thurston County has been in Shelton, where Mountain View Elementary School closed Tuesday for cleaning. A staff member’s spouse was a first responder at a COVID-19 outbreak at a long-term care facility in Kirkland where multiple patients have died of the virus, according to the school.
The school was open as normal Wednesday, with the staff member staying home on the recommendation from Mason County Public Health, Principal Mary K. Johnson told The Olympian in a phone interview.
As the illness continues to spread in Washington state, what could these closures and absences mean for students and parents? The Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) issued new guidance for school officials Tuesday that offers a few answers.
Are children exceptionally vulnerable to COVID-19? Experts say no
At this point, there is no evidence that shows children are more vulnerable to the virus that causes COVID-19 compared with the general population, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
In fact, state officials warn that people over age 60 and those with underlying health conditions are most at risk for a severe infection, though certain populations of kids, such as those with underlying health conditions, could be at increased risk.
Still, schools, where scores of children and adults have close contact and share supplies and spaces, can play a big role in prevention, according to CDC’s website.
Closing is a complex decision
The state Department of Health recommends students, staff members, or volunteers at schools be placed in a private room and wear a face mask if they meet certain criteria, such as if they’re ill with a fever or cough, or have difficulty breathing. Then, it recommends a school notify its local health department.
So far, no local health departments in Washington have called for schools to shut down, Superintendent of Public Instruction Chris Reykdal said at a press conference. The schools and districts that had closed did so out of “an abundance of caution,” said Reykdal.
When district and school officials are making these decisions, they have a lot to consider.
For one, a significant percentage of students rely on school breakfasts and lunches for basic nutrition — a factor included in an OSPI bulletin to district and school officials sent Feb. 28.
The agency is waiting on guidance from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Typically, there would be community feeding sites, OSPI spokesperson Katy Payne told The Olympian in a phone interview Tuesday. That may not be recommended in this situation.
Another factor: equity in alternative learning options. Some students may not have access to technology at home if webinars or other distance learning options are considered.
“For most of you, it will likely make more sense to cancel school and/or district services and make up or waive missed days than to deploy a distance learning model that can be accessed by some, but not all, of your students,” OSPI guidance reads.
OSPI prepared to grant waivers
Under state law, school districts have to offer 180 school days and make a certain average number of instructional hours available to students. But OSPI can waive those requirements — which are tied to funding — if there’s an emergency district-wide or school closure.
If a school district closes in response to the COVID-19 outbreak and they make every effort to make up that time but still fall short of requirements, the agency offered a solution in a bulletin addressed to district and school officials Tuesday.
If it’s necessary, OSPI says it will file an emergency rule so it can waive days and instructional hours the districts can’t make up. The agency will likely require schools to extend their years through June 19, and the rule would only apply to the 2019-20 school year unless the state gets guidance otherwise.
“There’s not a situation we can think of where we would deny that waiver,” spokesperson Payne told The Olympian Tuesday.
Districts will need to submit applications for a emergency waivers to OSPI, like they do in the case of snow days and other emergency closures, but this year OSPI is developing a web-based application for COVID-19-related school closures.
“Districts should feel confident in knowing that if schools are closed for an extended period of time, they will not be required to make up missed days and instructional hours beyond June 19,” the bulletin reads.
Individual absences are less standardized
The agency’s guidance on how schools should handle individual students’ absences is less prescriptive. That’s because OSPI has authority over the waivers but not over student attendance, according to Payne.
Essentially, districts and schools can decide how to handle cases where students hit their maximum number of absences, Payne said.
“I think it’s 100% case-by-case,” she said.
The most recent OSPI bulletin does include that school administrators can excuse absences due to student safety concerns, illnesses, health conditions, or medical appointments, and that state law allows districts to come up with more categories for excused absences as needed.
The truancy process in state law is based on unexcused absences, according to information relayed by Payne from Krissy Johnson, OSPI’s Lead Attendance Program Supervisor. Districts and schools, though, might have policies that limit the number of excused absences a student can have before absences start to be unexcused.
“Please exercise great caution before deciding not to excuse absences related to COVID-19 and starting the truancy process because of them,” it reads.
When asked whether it was a concern that an extended individual absence might interfere with a senior’s graduation plans, Payne said she would imagine that scenario would be rare. Say, if a student was already lagging behind and needed that time they missed to complete make-up work.
In the most recent bulletin, Superintendent Reykdal writes that OSPI expects districts to maintain their graduation timelines.
How districts are preparing in Thurston
Local districts have emphasized they’re making plans in case of a local outbreak and communicating with local and state health officials to monitor the situation and will follow their guidance. And they are communicating with families.
The North Thurston Public Schools (NTPS) webpage of frequently asked questions about COVID-19 includes that parents of medically fragile students in the district can supplement school work with “home school” supports and that there’s room for a case-by-case approach.
For now, NTPS is “focused on learning and reminding families and staff about best practices to stop the spread of germs,” spokesperson Courtney Schrieve wrote in a text message to The Olympian.
The district is not equipped to offer exclusively online learning for every student, the site reads. Similar language is on Olympia School District’s website.
Olympia’s frequently asked questions page also includes a link to its Pandemic Contingency Plan, updated March 2, and Yelm Community Schools is posting daily updates on its website.
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