Weekly Hot News Podcast, November 16, 2020

Last Monday, November 9th, the School Board met in a special session to hear the District’s proposed return-to-school plans for the remainder of the semester in accordance with updated guidance released by the Governor on October 30th. The proposal was unanimously approved by the Board and includes the following elements: Grades 3-12 remain in Comprehensive Distance Learning, CDL, through the end of Semester 1, which ends on January 28th, 2021.  Continue preparing for the possibility of bringing students in grades PreK-2 back for in-person learning as early as mid-January: • This would happen only IF Washington County health metrics and the calendar allow - taking into account holidays and natural breaks.  • Prior to Winter Break, staff and families will receive a communication letting them know whether or not a mid-January return for students in PreK-2 is possible.  Increase the number of students participating in Limited In-Person Instruction (LIPI), according to established criteria, until we are able to return K-12. Under the current health guidelines, counties must have a COVID-19 case rate of 100 or less per 100,000 of population, and a positivity rate of 8 percent or less for the disease in the previous 14 days, before they are eligible to start planning for a return of elementary students - by grade level, starting with PreK and Kindergarten - to the classroom. Washington County’s most recent 14-day health metrics - for the time period of October 25th to November 7th - show 189.8 cases per 100,000 people, which is almost double the maximum number allowable for beginning this transition. We anticipate our next big communications coming out in mid-December regarding a possible mid-January return for students in PreK-2; and in mid-January regarding our plans for all students in Quarter 3/Semester 2, based on the health metrics at that time. For current information and more resources, please visit www.hsd.k12.or.us/202021schoolyear.