- Riverside Elementary School
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February 5 Friday Update: Getting through the pandemic together and working on a collaborative plan that is safe for everyone.
February 5, 2021
Dear WCCUSD community,
Over the past month, we have received important information, scientific evidence, and other relevant data about the state of coronavirus and its impact on schools. Let’s not polarize what we have heard or learned. We can’t, not when we share the same goal.
None of us are OK with this new reality that was thrust upon us nearly a year ago, forcing us into Distance Learning, social distancing, and robbing us of our ability to interact and learn from one another in person. The only way we are going to get through this pandemic is together. We all want the same thing -- the safety and well-being of students, loved ones, and ourselves.
My team and I have heard and learned a lot over the past year. We know that transparency is key to building and maintaining trust. We will do better at being transparent about what we are doing to safely return to school. We have prepared our organization and our facilities in many ways already, such as:
- Improving air filtration in schools and classrooms that need it
- Optimizing spaces in schools and classrooms
- Installed hand sanitizing stations
- Purchased and implementing contact tracing software at each school and district building
- Purchased and storing necessary Personal Protective Equipment (masks, gloves, shields, etc.)
- Safety protocols posted at each school
- Worked to make our progress transparent through our dashboard (www.wccusd.net/return2school).
With all of the work we are doing to support a safe return to school, we know we need to do more. We commit to creating one comprehensive document that brings together all of the work that is being done and that has been done to get our schools ready for reopening, also understanding the pandemic situation is fluid and constantly changing.
The published plan will capture the following areas:
- Facilities protocols and readiness
- Contact Tracing Protocols
- Social Distancing and Masking Protocols
- COVID-19 Response protocols
- Potential Hybrid Models
- Links to district dashboards
- County and State Frameworks
- Family Educational Resources
- Additional Safety Plans
As of today, we do not have a hard and fast date to reopen our schools this spring as part of the 20-21 school year. The plan will ensure that, when we do return to in-person school, students and staff will be healthy, safe, and thriving.
We aim to share this plan with the public in the next few weeks. We have additional study sessions planned for Monday, February 22, and Friday, February 26. Stay tuned for more details on those sessions.
Thank you for the continued support to help us all get to a positive place for WCCUSD students in these challenging times.
In community,
Matthew Duffy
Superintendent