‘We will never go back to what we did last spring’

Since March, schools in the Creston Community School District have remained closed in an effort to curb the spread of COVID-19. With the upcoming school year starting Aug. 24, CCSD Superintendent Deron Stender held the first public forum about the district’s “Return to Learn” plan Thursday evening in the CCSD auditorium, which was streamed on Facebook.

In collaboration with a team of more than 25 people consisting of staff, students, administration, parents and paraeducators, Stender said the district has drafted several options for the 2020-21 academic year.

“We will never go back to what we did last spring, if I have a say in it,” he said.

Returning to learn

With a deadline of July 1, districts were required by the Iowa Department of Education to come up with different learning models to allow for adaptability in the case of an outbreak or a spike in virus cases. After surveying CCSD parents and school staff, three varying models were presented:

• Full school, on-location, with necessary health and safety guidelines;

• a hybrid model where students can be educated in person or online simultaneously;

• or a model for a worst case scenario, where school is entirely online.

Stender said that the ‘Return to Learn’ planning team intends to recommend the hybrid model to the school board sometime in August during a special board meeting but wish to field the suggestions and concerns of community members before doing so, as none of the plan is final.

“It doesn’t matter where you’re receiving your education, however you want it, we are going to deliver it the same way as if they were in a classroom,” said Stender. “We want that student that’s not in school to be participating with the class and activities.”

The recommended model would let families choose to receive on-line instruction or in-person education, and could be adjusted by the parents at any time. Students who need to quarantine and are enrolled in brick and mortar courses will be able to switch to the online module for that time without issue.

Group size would be reduced to allow full in-class learning, and grades 1-8 will have the students split into ‘cohorts,’ which would feature students seeing the same group of classmates throughout the day, minimizing the spread between the students.

“They will play together and hang around with the same 20 kids, go to lunch with the same 20 kids,” said Stender.

Students who participate in distance learning will receive instructions and support that demonstrate best practices for learning digitally. Distance learners would have access to the services they would traditionally have and would be able to see the students and the teacher in the classroom via electronic means. The district will provide each student with a learning device and, upon request, will provide a family with an internet device such as a hot spot.

Under this model, core curriculum and required courses will be prioritized, and electives may be limited if they are not affecting educational requirements. Additionally, route changes for transportation may be necessary due to social distancing guidelines, as a typical bus could have upwards of 60 students on it. Stender said the district is still currently weighing options on transportation, with consideration being given to the suspension of in-town routes within two miles of the facilities, or alternatively, splitting the routes, if the option is doable.

Health and safety

Protocol was adopted to address the return to learn planning group’s most important factor: the safety and wellness of students, faculty and community members. First and foremost, parents are responsible for their children’s health, and if a child feels ill or is showing signs of symptoms, they are urged to stay home and seek medical attention if necessary.

Students, staff and guests should not attend or participate in any school functions if they have a cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, a fever, chills, muscle pain, a sore throat, a new loss of taste or smell or have been in contact with anyone with a confirmed COVID-19 diagnosis within the preceding 14 days. Students who display signs of illness will not be allowed at district functions for 72 hours.

“This is a change in our culture,” said Stender. “A lot of times you would send kids to school sick, we would come to school sick. I’ve come to work sick many times and we don’t think anything of it. That’s a change that’s no longer acceptable. Some are going to follow it, some are not, and we are going to have to enforce it to the best of our abilities.”

The district recommends anyone entering a facility check their temperatures at home beforehand, as those with a temperature of 100.3 degrees or above are not permitted to be present. The district will not be holding temperature screenings at the school but reserves the right to ask or check the temperature of anyone in the building or attending the function.

“We are not prepared, trained, tool-wise, inventory-wise, PPE-wise, to be able to do that,” said Stender. “We need our parents and students who are capable to be responsible. If you don’t feel well, stay home. But as a district, we do retain the right to do a temp-check if we feel it needs to be done.”

An individual who tests positive for COVID-19 should follow the recommended procedures as determined by Union County Public Health, depending on where they had been and whether they had a facial covering. Individuals with COVID-19 are to quarantine for 10 days or an additional three days from the last date of symptom. Close household contacts should be quarantined as well. Students and faculty who have been exposed to a positive case will either be quarantined for 14 days or allowed to continue returning to school, wearing a mask. Public Health will notify the administration of positive cases and will conduct contact tracing as well.

Social distancing will be enforced, and students will be required to wear masks in situations where social distancing cannot be maintained. Masks will not be provided, as they are considered similar to a regular school supply. Students would not be sent home for not having a mask. They will be given one, however, the district asks this not become a reoccurring issue.

Additional measures include cafeteria regulations: limitations on food items that require spitting such as sunflower seeds, increased ventilation of fresh air, and individual consumption of food items. Students will need to bring their own beverages from home. Parents and guests must remain in their vehicles to drop off or pick up students.

Further discussion

Stender said he held the forum in order to figure out what needs the community feels most important and to hear input on the plans from parents.

“The plan is not perfect,” said Stender. “It will change more because we get more information... this is the first time in history of public education where the state is putting responsibility back on local school districts. With our plans, our learning models, our structures, they have not been helping at all, and I think they did this by design, because they don’t know the answers themselves and don’t want to be responsible when something doesn’t work.”

An additional forum is scheduled for 6 p.m. July 21 in the high school auditorium and live-streamed on Facebook. Any questions, comments or concerns can be directed to Superintendent Deron Stender at dstender@crestonschools.org or (641) 782-7028.