Arizona Department of Education releases guidelines for schools
YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) - The Arizona Department of Education (ADE) released a roadmap for reopening schools Monday that could potentially create a new normal for students during the pandemic.
The roadmap provides various recommendations and parameters on how school officials can approach the new school year to reopen.
The guidelines include being able to screen both students and employees once they arrive to school for symptoms and history of exposure.
Cleaning, disinfection, and ventilation practices have to be done more frequently and intensely.
Students are encouraged to be in smaller groups, including reducing class sizes. The ADE also encourages limiting the mixing of persons in the group, while practicing social distancing.
The schools should come up with a plan for students or employees if they get sick, and encourage anyone who is sick to stay home.
Everyone at the school is recommended to be given flexible leave if they get sick.
The Center for Disease Control (CDC) is encouraging everyone to wear cloth face coverings, where physical social distancing is difficult to maintain. This could be the case for children who return back to school and are not able to physically distance themselves.
Social distancing measures are also encouraged on school buses.
The guidelines recommend assigned seating for riders, staggering riders, alternative schedules to transport students, or even the need for more buses to be able to separate children more.
If none of these options are possible for school districts, then school officials are advised to consider having children wear face coverings.
The guidelines mention that assigned seating during bus transportation or in the classroom would be important because of how easy it would be able to track virus spread if any of the students or staff were to test positive for the virus.
In the classroom, the staff is recommended to provide space seating of six feet apart. They are encouraged to turn desks to face the same direction or have all students sit on only one side of the table.
Physical barriers, such as sneeze guards are recommended where students cannot remain six feet apart.
All of the screening policies must also take into account students with disabilities.
As the school year opens, children interacting and playing together could be no more as one of the recommendations included closing shared spaced such as dining halls and playgrounds with shared equipment.
If schools decide to leave this open, they must be cleaned and disinfected between use.
The roadmap was created with the help of Kathy Hoffman, Superintendent of Public Instruction along with over 100 statewide stakeholders listed on the document.
As COVID-19 and the conditions surrounding the pandemic are continuing to evolve, the guidance is likely to change, be amended, or augmented.
The roadmap only offers suggestions and doesn't require schools to implement anything.
District One plans to meet with school officials Thursday to begin discussing a plan for it's students and staff for the upcoming school year.
Crane Elementary School District says they are evaluating the information provided in the roadmap for options. The district also says that they hope a special session of the legislature is called soon to address clear protocols on health and wellbeing for students and staff, additional flexible instructional models, accessibility for all students, and budget stability. The district feels there four priorities are essential in addressing Arizona's public education during the pandemic.
Crane school district with be participating in a county-wide Education Town Hall meeting scheduled for June 8th to help in deciding what their plans will be for reopening.
