Carlsbad Unified Students Return To Five-Day Instructional Model On March 29

Carlsbad CA

27 March, 2021

11:57 PM

Description

Press release from the Carlsbad Unified School District: March 26, 2021 Carlsbad Unified School District is pleased to announce that interested middle and high school students will return to a five day per week model beginning on Monday, March 29, 2021. A distance learning option is available for students who choose not to return to campus at this time. On Wednesday, March 17, 2021, San Diego County entered the red tier, allowing schools to reopen for in-person instruction in grades 7-12. On Thursday, March 18, Carlsbad Unified welcomed back students in grades 7 through 12 in a two-day per week hybrid schedule. On Saturday, March 20, 2021, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) relaxed physical distancing requirements in schools, citing new information about the effectiveness of non-pharmaceutical interventions in schools with less distance between students (including universal mask wearing, increased ventilation in classrooms, implementation of MERV-13 filters in HVAC units and HEPA air filtration units in classrooms, and increased hand sanitizing and classroom cleaning protocols). The CDPH update on March 20 eliminated a strict physical distancing requirement, changing to a recommendation of three feet between students and an acknowledgement that a "bundle" of virus transmission mitigation strategies is now known to be effective with less distance between students. Since October 2020, Carlsbad Unified Schools have worked to procure the supplies and protocols necessary to implement a "bundle" of virus transmission mitigation strategies on each of our campuses. In January 2021 a team of experts from the County of San Diego Health and Human Services Agency visited our campuses to see the mitigation strategies in place, and reviewed and approved our plans at that time. Public health officials have also confirmed there is no evidence of virus transmission on our campuses, even as elementary school students have been learning in person since September 2020. The current bundle of virus transmission mitigation strategies include: As a result of the relaxation of physical distancing requirements by CDPH, on March 24, 2021, the CUSD Board of Trustees voted to combine the current A and B cohorts so that all interested students can return to five days per week of on-campus instruction beginning on Monday, March 29. As noted by Board President Claudine Jones at the meeting on March 24, the district hopes to reduce the possibility of any more disruptions to the schedule this year; Jones stated "I'm hoping that this transition is our last." Also during the meeting on March 24, the Carlsbad Unified Board of Trustees discussed the need for increased social, emotional, and mental health support for students both in the current year and in future school years. The Board agreed to include the topic in their discussion of actions and services aligned with the district's annual LCAP (Local Control Accountability Plan) at the next regular meeting of the Board on April 21, 2021. In the meantime, students and parents are encouraged to reach out directly to their counselor or other trusted adult on campus if they are in need of assistance. The district wishes to thank the tireless work of its more than 1,000 certificated and classified staff members as we've transitioned through a variety of public health directives over the past 12 months. We also wish to thank our students and parents for their perseverance through this difficult time. We're now in the planning phase for a more traditional schedule next year, and look forward to providing an update to families and staff in the coming months. This press release was produced by the Carlsbad Unified School District. The views expressed here are the author's own.