SAN ANSELMO, CALIFORNIA – MARCH 31: Signs outside San Domenico private school show that the school has closed its campus to outside visitors because of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) on March 31, 2020 in San Anselmo, United States. California Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond said, “Due to the current safety concerns and needs for ongoing social distancing it currently appears that our students will not be able to return to school campuses before the end of the school year,” (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) The California State Board of Education released its guidelines for schools to reopen amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The 55-page book of guidelines recommends that all students, teachers and staff be subjected to temperature checks and required to wear some sort of face covering. Classrooms also are recommended to keep doors and windows open in order to increase outdoor air circulation, which makes the virus less transmissible.
The guidelines also state that schools need to have increased supervision during recess and physical education to ensure that students are staying six feet apart; students should also not engage in any physical activities that involve sharing equipment. During meal times, students should not be able to share tables and food servers should be behind plexiglass.
All surfaces should be disinfected constantly, and students, teachers and staff should frequently wash their hands with soap and water. Students shouldn’t share books, toys, games or electronic devices. Anyone who begins to show symptoms of COVID-19, such as a fever, cough or shortness of breath, should be isolated and taken to seek medical care.
The state guidelines are not mandatory.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has had a devastating effect on everything we know about providing education,” State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond said in a statement. “It forces us to enter into a new conversation about the way we provide instruction.”
Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Austin Beutner declined to comment to City News Service about the state’s released guidelines. City News Service noted that Beutner had stated in a recent video that students need to be in a school setting, but it will be difficult to determine the best way forward.
“We owe it to all in the school community to make sure we do this the right way,” Beutner said. “You can expect regular updates on this topic and a more definitive plan within the next month or so.”
There are currently around 131,000 COVID-19 cases in California and 4,653 deaths from the virus; the new cases and deaths in the state on June 7 were 2,190 and 48, respectively. In Los Angeles County, there were 823 new cases and 10 new deaths announced on June 8, bringing the county’s respective totals to 64,644 and 2,655.
More news and opinions than at a Shabbat dinner, right in your inbox.