Schools strain for clarity on opening

As a pandemic summer heats up meteorologically, so has the national rhetoric around how school districts will start classes in August and September. Normally sleepy and short meetings of school boards across Carlton County have become hours-long discussions on what school days will look like in the fall. Committees of staff have formed and ramped up planning in the past few weeks as an announcement is expected Monday from state leaders on how things will proceed.

While Covid-19 cases in Minnesota have generally flattened the past month, with the exception of rising cases among young people, spikes in the number of cases and deaths in southern and western states have met with edicts from the federal government that schools must fully open.

Minnesota officials have said it will be the arbiter of what's best for state students and have hinted that it will really be up to individual school districts about what direction they see as balancing the need for schooling with the safety of students and staff. The state has offered three scenarios for schools to work from:

• In-person learning for all students with schools creating as much space between students and teachers as is feasible during the day but with no strict enforcement of 6 feet of social distancing during primary instructional time.

• A hybrid model with strict social distancing and capacity limits. Schools would limit the overall number of people in school facilities and on transportation vehicles to half of maximum occupancy. Sufficient social distancing with at least 6 feet between people would be enforced.

• Distance learning only, such as the last few months of the school year this spring.

A quick look at schools in the county shows a definite lean toward a hybrid model. Teachers and administration have heard loud and clear from parents that distance learning puts a further strain on families aside from the general concern about the Covid-19 pandemic.

An informal Minnesota Department of Education survey of families conducted June 15 to July 6, with 130,000 completed responses, showed that 42 percent felt the distance learning experience was "bad." Just more than 35 percent felt that the experience was "good." The factors guiding those responses depended much on technology success. But parents cited a lack of "empowerment" and mental challenges in dealing with the pandemic along with a whole new way of learning as major hurdles in distance learning. A majority of respondents, 64 percent, said they would be "comfortable" with sending children back to school full-time. Just 36 percent said they were not or were unsure, mostly fueled by concern about public health. Some parents cited medically vulnerable people at home (42 percent) and a bad experience with distance learning (38 percent).

Staff in Wrenshall have been planning since late June, spurred by the mixed bag of lessons from total distance learning and the call from parents wanting to know what to expect come September. The small district has advantages in scale.

For example, with the help of parents ferrying children to school, Wrenshall could better distance children on buses. Larger districts, like Cloquet, would have a harder time by virtue of more students to wrangle with. And a sprawling district like Carlton, which contracts with a transportation company, would have its own challenges.

But schools in the region are looking at Wrenshall's "Restart Blueprint" for inspiration. It was released on July 13, far ahead of most districts in the state. "We are in the early stages," superintendent Kim Belcastro told the school board on July 20. "But other schools are looking at us."

The district has been using the services of the Institute for Environmental Assessment, which offers consulting services related to indoor environmental quality, hazardous materials, and health and safety. In short, it goes into a school and determines how it can keep its classrooms and hallways clean and keep people from getting too close to each other and spreading Covid. It has an office in the region but serves school districts, hospitals, government agencies and businesses across the United States.

IEA's Taylor Dickinson recently told the Wrenshall School Board that its "blueprint" is far ahead of the other 34 school districts the company helps in the state. When the announcement is made by the state Monday giving schools more direction, the rush will be on and Wrenshall already has ordered $22,000 worth of cleaning materials and personal protection equipment.

Wrenshall will likely use a hybrid model, Belcastro said. "We have to be prepared to move in between," she said. "Most of our time has been spent on the hybrid model."

Here is a look at what school days in Wrenshall might look like in the fall, with the caveat that not all districts are alike and individual decisions will be made. Because of the depth and breadth of the Wrenshall plan, the Pine Knot News thought it'd be useful as a snapshot of what parents, students and staff across Carlton County can expect. Nothing in the Wrenshall plan or any others is set in stone, and districts are beefing up communications with parents to keep them in the loop.

Who is in school?

Under a proposed hybrid plan, Wrenshall would divide elementary students into two groups. One group would learn in the classroom on Mondays and Tuesdays. The other would come in on Thursdays and Fridays. Wednesday would be a "reset" day, with teachers shoring up lesson plans and the school getting a thorough cleaning.

Teacher Theresa Vermeersch said elementary teachers went back and forth on how to best serve their students. They thought about one week on and one week off. They thought about all students in the school four days a week with a compressed daily schedule. In the end, the "two and two" plan came out on top, she said.

Student contact was the driver, she said. While three days of distance learning isn't ideal, she said the two days will do a better job in keeping students engaged, for educational, social and mental well-being.

Because Wrenshall hosts all of its classes in one building, trying to wedge in upper-grade students is a problem. Teachers discussed mirroring the elementary model, but fitting everyone in while keeping social distance proved to be a problem. A solution, preferred by 13 of 16 high school teachers, is being called a "four and one" model, meaning students will be distance learning four days a week and be able to come to the school one day to check in with teachers, take part in hands-on lessons, and even socialize somewhat. The in-school day would likely be Wednesday, when elementary students are not there.

"Even one day is important," Belcastro said.

Teacher Jaime Wolfe said the task now is how to "get the most out of the one day." It won't simply be teachers setting office hours to check in with students, he said. "Even face-to-face time for one hour can be crucial," he said.

Getting to school

Transportation is a "huge funnel," IEA's Dickinson said of cramming students onto school buses and dropping them off at a common area. It doesn't work during a viral pandemic with a focus on keeping people apart as much as possible. If forced by the state to have in-school learning only, there is more leeway on how many students could be put onto a bus. Under the hybrid model, and strictly following the edict from the state for 6 feet of distance, there are only seven seats that could be used on a 77- or 88-passenger bus.

Wrenshall is hoping to work with parents on getting kids to school using their own personal vehicles. It will also use a Times Square approach on signage to discourage mingling at the drop-off locations, encouraging students to go directly to classrooms, where they will likely stay for much of a school day as teachers rotate into classrooms to avoid hall congestion.

Cleaning

Everyone will get in on the act of keeping the school clean to avoid any hotspots where the virus might linger. Teachers and custodial staff are being trained on how and where to clean - common touch areas like bathrooms and door handles in particular. There will also be webinars so district residents also get a sense of how the school is being cleaned.

Getting around

The district has ordered masks and shields for protection from aspiration from mouths and noses. Students in grade 6 and up and staff will wear masks or, if preferred, use face shields.

Playgrounds will be used on a classroom basis, not a lunch-hour free-for-all basis. Equipment will be washed after each use.

Under the hybrid plan, and against the guidance of the state, Wrenshall planners don't believe keeping students 6 feet apart is possible. But it will keep as few students as possible in spaces, rearranging desks and storing expendable furniture in rooms to make more space available.

The library will use a system of encasing books in plastic bags. The school-owned personal computers students use will get wiped down.

No water fountains will be in use, with students encouraged to use water bottles and refilling stations.

Lunches will be staggered and there will be marked spots for seating. Some students could be eating breakfast and lunch in classrooms.

Sick bay

If someone shows signs of illness, they will be isolated in the nurse station at the school and staff will supervise them wearing protective gear. If a students or staff member falls ill, the classroom will be vacated and immediately cleaned. Teachers and staff are being cross-trained to fill in for any staff member who becomes ill and can't be at the school.

Screening will be done on everyone entering the building and walls will be filled with information on what to look for when it comes to the symptoms of Covid-19.

Mental health

The district is stepping up its mental wellness work with students, since it has been indicated by parents as a top concern during the pandemic and distance learning. The district added a social worker to help keep tabs on the well-being of students.

Fair warning

Preparing for scenarios is one thing. The reality of Covid-19 and the chances of someone in the school building coming down with it is almost a certainty. That hit home earlier this month when the district learned that a student had tested positive for Covid and had contact with volleyball players who had been practicing at the gym. Practices were immediately shut down for two weeks and the gym thoroughly cleaned. Belcastro reported that the student recovered after testing positive. She said the first thought was that the student simply had a cold. The student's parents went into quarantine as well and urged everyone to be vigilant about any signs of illness.

Much of any success in bringing students back to the school will rely on people reporting any signs of illness early. As part of the district's Restart Blueprint, "communication across the board" is the first item in the document. The district will implement its website and social media along with the instant alert messaging system commonly used in scenarios such as a weather-related school closings to relay Covid-19 updates.