Second grade will return Nov. 5, Peninsula School District tells parents

The Peninsula School District will call back second-grade students for in-person learning beginning Thursday, Nov. 5, the district has announced, despite a recent increase in Pierce County coronavirus cases.

Students in kindergarten and first grade returned to the district’s nine elementary schools on Sept. 8 All other grades, up through high school, remain in online instruction.

The district mailed a survey to the parents of second-graders on Tuesday night to determine how many would send their children back to school.

Any return would be subject to guidance from the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department, the district said.

“Even though TPCHD is currently reporting COVID-19 case rates which are trending higher, we believe it is in the best interest of students, staff and families to continue planning for the return of students for in-person learning,” said the unsigned email sent to parents on Wednesday, Oct. 14.

“Information from the survey emailed to families last night will tell us which families want their child to come to school for in-person learning and which families want their child to continue to learn remotely,” the email said. “This will help us to plan our staffing.”

Parents have until midnight Sunday, Oct. 18, to return the survey form.

The district also said that “beginning in mid-October,” some individual and small groups of students in grades 2-12 who receive special education services in a resource-room setting have the option to come to school for in-person services.

Additionally, individual or small groups of students who are English Learners, homeless, or have problems accessing remote learning will be able to come to school for limited periods of time.

Virus rates trending up

The Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department warned last week that schools may have to return to all-remote learning if the coronavirus level remains high for two weeks or more.

“Our goal has always been to return to in-person instruction as soon as it’s safely possible,” the Peninsula district said in an unsigned email to parents then.

However, the current metrics for COVID-19 cases in Pierce County is 87 cases per 100,000 over the last 14 days, which puts the county in the “high” level of virus risk.

“Therefore, we will continue in-person educational programs as they stand now,” the email said. “We are in regular contact with the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department and will continue to follow their guidance. District leaders continue to plan for in-person learning for students in grades 2-5 and secondary students, so we are prepared for when case rates return to the “Moderate” or “Low” range.”

K-1 to remain open for now

Online learning will continued for grades 2 though high school, as well as younger children whose parents prefer it.

“We have been asked if the K-1 program will need to close,” district Superintendent Art Jarvis said in another email to parents and staff on Oct. 9.

“Although we will plan for the possibility, the district does not anticipate closing the system to K-1 children unless directed by the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department. We recognize that possibility if metrics soar to ranges previously seen in March and mid-summer.

“Every county is attempting to determine their own metrics. It appears neighboring Kitsap County will consider utilizing a metric to close a classroom if two or more cases are confirmed, and/or to close a school if two or more classrooms are affected. Given the low rates locally, we would anticipate that Pierce County may also look at a similar metric in their decision. Given the nature of transmission rates, we may also see a decline of the next two weeks, which would begin to return us to the “Moderate” to “Low” range.

A few children ill

District officials said kindergarten and first-graders have been attending school for two weeks with few problems, although two children were sent home from Evergreen Elementary School on the Key Peninsula this Monday with fevers and a cough.

“In the past two weeks Evergreen has sent seven children home for various ailments typical for school age children (runny noses, coughs, fever, general malaise),” said Aimee Gordon, the district spokesperson. “Students and staff at other schools have also returned home due to feeling unwell during the school day.”

The district has a protocal for dealing with signs of illness, Gordon said.

“Any person at school exhibiting illness is asked to leave; students are contained in a supervised isolation room until a parent arrives. Staff and parents are given instructions about next steps, including a recommendation to get a COVID-19 test. Students and staff are asked to stay at home while awaiting test results.”

A parent at Evergreen complained to The Gateway that parents of other children at the school are not being informed of such incidents.

Gordon said that is largely due to confidentiality rules; federal law prohibits identification of individuals treated for illness by public agencies. Also, she said, the schools do not receive the results of any tests children may receive. It can act only on advice of the health department.

Warning from county

Meanwhile, in a statement issued Friday, Dr. Anthony Chen, the county director of health, warmed that his department may recommend a return to online learning for all students, except for small groups of special-needs pupils, if coronavirus levels remain in the “high” category.

“Schools should prepare to return to the education modality for high disease activity level: “distance learning with the option for limited in-person learning in small groups, or cohorts, of students for the highest need students,” he said.

“When the county entered the moderate level at the beginning of September, we advised schools they could begin a gradual return to in-person education for elementary students. We also said we would be using the case count trends and other metrics to inform future decisions.

“We notified you last week of a worrisome increase in case numbers and warned of the potential need to return to remote learning if case rates remained elevated. For schools already moving forward with reopening plans, we encouraged a pause in bringing back additional students.

“Now that we have crossed into the high level in the state decision tree, we will watch to see if the rate is going to stay in that range for a sustained period. Our analysis shows it likely will.

To avoid confusing back-and-forth decisions, Chen said, the department will begin a two-week observation period Oct. 9.

“If we stay in the high level for the next two weeks, you should follow the decision tree and return to remote learning Oct. 26,” he wrote.

The decision tree allows an exception for students of the highest need, he noted. Schools may offer in person learning for highest need students in small groups of up to five students with up to two staff for in-person learning.

The Peninsula School District’s School Re-Opening information page is at: https://www.psd401.net/schoolreopening

The health department’s “Safe Start Dashboard” is at https://www.tpchd.org/healthy-people/diseases/covid-19-pierce-county-cases

This story was originally published October 14, 2020 at 5:10 PM.