It was anticipated that the board would be asked to authorize the reopening of our elementary schools on September 28th. That is no longer the recommendation of the administration.
The Cowlitz County Department of Health and Human Services released their updated school metrics on Monday, September 21.
Currently, Cowlitz County is in the "Moderate" range, with 39 cases per 100,000 in the fourteen day lookback period. Their summary is as follows:
Good news: We’re still in moderate range Cowlitz County is currently well within the moderate range of COVID activity and meets the recommended criteria of being in this range for at least 3 weeks before considering expanding in-person learning. In addition, our percent positivity rate remains low.
Caution warranted: Cases are trending up We knew that this week’s report would tell us whether or not we’d see an uptick in cases after the Labor Day holiday. If no uptick had occurred, we could have begun to consider in-person learning. However, because this metric has begun to increase, we’ll need to wait for future reports to assess how high rates will spike before decreasing.
For now, Cowlitz County Health and Human Services recommends continuing remote learning until the extent of the spike in cases is determined.
Resolution 20-17 is based on a resolution recommended by WSSDA. It suspends provisions of board policies and/or whole policies, as identified by the District Superintendent or designee if such suspension is necessary to implement the adopted reopening plan or is necessary for ongoing compliance with written guidance from the Department of Health, the Department of Labor and Industries, or the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction relating to safely reopening schools while containing COVID-19. and grants the district superintendent is granted the authority to reopen schools when conditions permit and will timely report to and consult with the Board, as feasible and appropriate, regarding efforts to implement the reopening plan and the limitations thereon;
Administrative Recommendation /MOTION/ "I move we adopt Resolution 20-17 as presented"