Ward 3 Update: A Safe Return to School
Dear Neighbors,
This afternoon, it was announced that DC Public Schools (DCPS) is shifting to an opt-out consent model for coronavirus testing in schools. Essentially, this means that instead of requiring families to proactively submit consent forms for preventative testing, they must request that their child not be included in the randomized testing program. This is a significant gain for those of us who have been advocating for the 'opt-out' model, because it avoids creating a disparity among schools in the percentage of children tested each week. As randomized saliva testing will be one of the leading outbreak preventative efforts within each DCPS school, moving forward with an opt-out model enables all schools to meet the same testing standard. It is also my hope that this shift will lead to a higher percentage of students tested each week.
While today's announcement is a welcome change, there are still critical steps that DCPS should take to ensure the greatest degree of safety for students, families, and school staff:
1. Move Lunch Outside - Although principals have some discretion in how to configure their spaces, there should be a directive that all lunches/meals be eaten outside (or at least to the greatest extent possible). Otherwise, students, many of whom cannot yet be vaccinated, will be removing their masks and sitting at minimal distances from each other while indoors. The Executive has noted that not every school will have the capacity to facilitate outdoor meals, but it should nevertheless be a priority as meal times will be the most vulnerable time of the day for unmasked students.
2. Require Vaccinations for All Staff - I joined several of my Council colleagues in sending a letter to the Mayor calling for a requirement that all DCPS employees and childcare facility workers be vaccinated against COVID-19. Currently, unvaccinated staff will be subject to weekly testing requirements, but we are asking for a higher vaccination standard that would mirror similar public health mandates in other jurisdictions.
3. Require FDA-Approved Vaccines for Students - Just as students are already required to get other vaccines (and in light of the recent FDA approval of the Pfizer vaccine), eligible students should also be required to get FDA-approved coronavirus vaccines. On the Executive-Council conference call today, the representative from DC Health said that they are looking into this change.
4. Address Social Distancing Limitations - Distances between students must be in the 3-6 foot range as recommended by the CDC, but some schools are reporting that they are not able to meet this standard and in-classroom distances may be under 3 feet. These space limitations must be addressed for each school that experiences more crowded classrooms and could possibly be done by providing individual schools with more robust support for outdoor classrooms.
5. Provide a Virtual Option - Finally, a more expansive virtual learning option should be provided. There is no doubt that an in-person education provides the highest standard of learning and social/emotional growth, but there are also many DCPS families who attend schools in areas with low vaccination rates and growing case rates. There are also many immunocompromised residents and multi-generational families/caregivers who live in the same household as DCPS students. With these considerations, the level of risk faced by each family is just simply not the same. To date, over 1,300 people have signed a petition asking DCPS for a virtual learning option. At a minimum, the medical permission for virtual learning should include a doctor saying not just that virtual learning is medically required, but allow the medical exemption if the doctor says that virtual learning is medically recommended.
The above list is the result of my touring all of our Ward 3 schools, recommendations from our State Board of Education representative Ruth Wattenberg, and receiving input from school leadership and DCPS families. I shared this list with Mayor Bowser and her Executive team on Wednesday, and have since been joined by my colleagues Charles Allen, Robert White, and Janeese Lewis George in calling for a virtual option.
As I shared in my previous newsletter, I believe that our schools are generally in good shape to reopen for in-person learning, and I largely attribute that to our school leaders, teachers, and maintenance staff. But, that should not stop us from pushing for the highest safety operations standard as we emerge from the pandemic. And of course I wish students, teachers, and staff a very successful opening next week.
Regards,
Mary
