Name: Schools prep for reopening in San Mateo County
Brand: smdailyjournal.com
SKU: smdailyjournal-com-102
Availability: OnlineOnly

critic

Schools prep for reopening in San Mateo County

preview

You have permission to edit this article.Welcome,With health conditions improving amid the pandemic and San Mateo County moving to the less restrictive red tier, local educators are preparing to reopen school campuses.County Superintendent Nancy Magee said the first day of eligibility for all schools to open will be Tuesday, Oct. 6 — marking two weeks from when state officials moved the county out of the purple tier.While preparing for the return of in-person learning, Magee said she anticipates a process will be shared with education officials next week detailing the safety considerations which must be addressed.She expected the protocols will mirror those included in the waiver application elementary schools needed to get approved to reopen while the county was still in the purple tier.Two public schools districts — Hillsborough City and Menlo Park — all recently received waivers from education and health agencies to begin in-person learning. The school systems join 27 private schools and one public school, Connect Community Charter in Redwood City, among those with waiver approvals.Magee said the plans submitted by other schools looking to reopen while the county is in the red tier will receive thorough evaluation by local education officials checking for alignment with safety framework and health officials checking testing and tracing policies.Because so many district administrators have spent months planning for a safe return to campus, Magee said most have established testing policies. But for those districts needing further assistance, she expected the county office may be able to provide additional support.For her part, Magee said school officials have shown great receptiveness to the aid offered by the county education and health offices, and appreciate the guidance during a uniquely challenging time.“The school leaders want to do this the right way,” she said, noting officials have been caught in the crossfire of many school community members with strongly held opinions on the best ways to reopen campuses.Looking ahead, Magee anticipated most schools will take a tiered approach in bringing students back to campus — meaning not all classrooms will be filled as soon as they are opened.To that end, she noted most districts have already started allowing small groups of students with specialized needs back on campus. And even once larger groups returns, she said distance learning and online lessons will remain critical resources over the foreseeable future.The opportunity to reopen campuses arrives just as many districts were hitting their stride in remote learning arrangements, said Magee, who added many middle and high schools will continue mostly with online classes for immediate future.Online learning offers valued flexibility as well, which will be necessary if the county returns to the purple tier or if a school community experiences a COVID-19 outbreak.The latter scenario remains a key concern for Magee, who acknowledged that allowing students back to campuses affects the likelihood of virus transmission.“We do have community spread. It is out in the community. We do believe we can educate students in person, following the four pillars because those things are proven to reduce the spread,” she said.The four pillars to which she refers are health and hygiene protocol, face coverings requirements, physical distancing standards and gathering restrictions — previously established by education and health officials as keys to reopening campuses.While acknowledging the risks associated with allowing students to return, Magee expressed confidence that adherence to the standards will allow school to start again in the safest fashion possible.“These things do work. So as long as people are doing them and taking them seriously and implementing them with fidelity, these things do slow the spread,” she said.(650) 344-5200 ext. 105Note to readers: this article has been amended to accurately reflect the amount of school districts that have received reopening waivers. Hillsborough City and Menlo Park elementary school districts were granted approval for students to return.&nbsp;×××Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd,racist or sexually-oriented language.PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.Don't Threaten. Threats of harming anotherperson will not be tolerated.Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyoneor anything.Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ismthat is degrading to another person.Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link oneach comment to let us know of abusive posts.Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitnessaccounts, the history behind an article.×To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account.We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription.A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means you’re helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much!Please purchase an Enhanced Subscription to continue reading.Your current subscription does not provide access to this content.DIGITAL ACCESS to all our award winning content onlineCommenting capabilities on every storyAccess to our daily e-edition for the past 90 issuesThe good feeling of supporting real, local news in your community$99.00for 365 daysRatePriceDuration1 Year$99.00for 365 days6 Months$72.00for 180 days3 Months$45.00for 90 days1 Month$20.00for 30 days1 Week$8.25for 7 days$60.00for 365 daysRatePriceDuration1 Year$60.00for 365 days6 Months$42.00for 180 days3 Months$27.00for 90 days1 Month$12.00for 30 days1 Week$5.00for 7 daysThank you for visiting our booth at the Rediscover San Mateo Community Fest! Enjoy one free month of access to the San Mateo Daily Journal's website and e-edition. Offer expires September 15, 2022, so sign up today!Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.Error! There was an error processing your request.If you have an event you'd like to list on the site, submit it now!© Copyright 2022 , 1720 S. Amphlett Blvd., Suite 123 San Mateo, CA&nbsp;| &nbsp;|Powered by from .

You have permission to edit this article.Welcome,With health conditions improving amid the pandemic and San Mateo County moving to the less restrictive red tier, local educators are preparing to reopen school campuses.County Superintendent Nancy Magee said the first day of eligibility for all schools to open will be Tuesday, Oct. 6 — marking two weeks from when state officials moved the county out of the purple tier.While preparing for the return of in-person learning, Magee said she anticipates a process will be shared with education officials next week detailing the safety considerations...

Schools prep for reopening in San Mateo County

No article scores yet.

CRITIC REVIEWS

PUBLIC REVIEWS