ACTION ITEMS

Approval of Revised School Reopening Plan

In August, the School Board adopted a School Reopening Plan.  Since that time, a number of changes have been made in the guidance related to school reopening.  Some of these changes have occurred at the state level, others at the local or regional level.

Most recently, on October 6th, Governor Inslee announced changes in limitations on youth sports, opening the door to limited activity. 

In an effort to have the reopening plan accurately reflect current conditions and opportunities to serve students, the administration is recommending the adoption of revisions to the reopening plan.   There is some minor language cleanup change in the document, but the following are more substantive changes.

Key changes to the 4 Stage Reopening Plan:

Stage 1—

• Expansion of face-to-face supports to allow support for all students.  Examples of this are 1) a small group of chemistry students coming in for a Lab, allowing a whole class to experience the lab over a five-day period. 2) small groups of Kindergarten students coming to school for face-to-face instruction one day per week.
• Expanding small group size from 4 to 6 students (Aligning with Governor Inslee's October 6 guidance changes).
• Aligning with Cowlitz County Metrics rather than both Clark and Cowlitz.
• Allowing consideration of shifting Yale Elementary on a different timeline from other elementary schools.
• Providing flexibility, with Cowlitz Health officials' support, to shift stages before all metrics are fully met.
• Authorizing the district superintendent, with board consultation, to make decisions on shifting between stages of reopening.
• Allowing clubs and athletic teams to meet with groups no larger than 6 and with PPE and safety precautions in place.

Stage 2—

• Adding flexibility to bring back smaller groups of K-4 students on an alternating day schedule.
• Adding flexibility to begin a phase-in of face-to-face hybrid learning for grades 5-12 with Cowlitz Health officials' support, to shift stages before all metrics for movement to Stage 3 are fully met.
• Allowing clubs and athletic teams to meet with groups no larger than 6 and with PPE and safety precautions in place.

The governor's changes, allowing athletics and activities to resume on a very limited basis, are significant and will require special precautions to ensure the health and safety of student athletes, club members, and coaches/advisors.  District Athletic Director, Paul Huddleston, has developed documents to support the safe return to play for students.  These include Practice Guidelines, Sport Specific Guidance, and a Student "one-pager"