Governor: Area Colleges can open this week, schools July 1

Area colleges and universities can resume in-person classes as early as this Friday, while public schools could begin them on July 1, under new guidance issued by Gov. Tom Wolf and the State Department of Education Friday.

Wolf issued a media release at 11 a.m. saying schools in the state’s yellow and green re-opening phases could resume in-person lessons if they follow multiple requirements and recommendations, first of which is “to develop health and safety plans based on “guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the state Department of Health (DOH).”

Thirty minutes later Department of Education Secretary Pedro Rivera hosted an online media conference via Zoom offering more details, though the biggest point he regularly came back to was flexibility in the plan. “Our role is to provide guidance so all institutions can look a little more specifically at a process that best meets the needs of their community,” he said.

Acknowledging the likely added cost of many of the changes to local school districts, Rivera said he has talked with the general assembly about providing more state funding, and has been looking for other ways to “mitigate the additional expense.”

He encourage districts to work with students and families, and stressed several times that the health and safety plans must be posted online as well as submitted to the state. The wearing of face masks is encouraged but he conceded many children, particularly younger ones or those with special needs, may not be able to, so districts are given flexibility to determine the best actions on their own.

Rivera said PDE has been urging the state legislature to allocate more money for transportation because costs could escalate if students are separated, requiring more bus runs. “The guidelines are definitely going to change the methodology by which we transport students to and from schools, and frankly we must be flexible.” One option in the guidelines is for neighboring districts to share bus services and work together to curb costs.

While institutions of higher education could start in-person lessons this Friday, it isn’t likely to happen locally.

Shortly after the governor’s news, Luzerne County Community College released plans to return to in-person learning this fall. President Thomas Leary said there is discussion of having some students return earlier for summer classes.

Misericordia University Enrollment Marketing Manager Amy Bachman said via email that summer classes will remain online-only, as previously arranged, but that “it is our intent to resume face-to-face instruction in the fall with the required health and safety measures in place as a top priority. Our planning group is reviewing the state’s helpful guidance for its impact on our operations as well as the detailed preparation that is now underway.”

Wilkes University ​has posted a notice on its website with a similar plan, keeping summer classes online but adding the school “is committed to resuming a residential and face-to-face campus experience this fall. But that can only happen with the proper guidance from our national, state and local health officials, and the proper trajectory of this virus. … University leaders from across campus are exploring various contingency plans to account for possible delays or interruptions that we may experience in the months ahead.” Wilkes is planning to share more details later this month.

For elementary and secondary schools in the yellow phase — which includes Luzerne County — the list of requirements is fairly broad:

• Identification of a “pandemic coordinator” and/or “pandemic team” with defined roles and responsibilities for health and safety preparedness and response planning;

• Steps to protect children and staff at higher risk for severe illness;

• Processes for monitoring students and staff for symptoms and history of exposure;

• Steps to take in relation to isolation or quarantine when a staff member, child, or visitor becomes sick or demonstrates a history of exposure;

• Guidelines for when an isolated or quarantined staff member, child, or visitor may return to school;

• Guidelines for hygiene practices for students and staff which include the manner and frequency of hand-washing and other best practices;

• Guidelines on the use of face coverings (masks or face shields) by all staff, and for older students as appropriate

• Expectations for the posting of signs in highly visible locations, that promote everyday protective measures;

• Procedures for cleaning, sanitizing, disinfecting, and ventilating learning spaces, surfaces, and any other areas used by students;

• Protocols for classroom/learning space occupancy that allow for 6 feet of separation among students and staff throughout the day to the maximum extent feasible;

• Procedures for restricting the use of cafeterias and other congregate settings, and serving meals in alternate settings such as classrooms;

• Protocols for sporting activities consistent with the CDC Considerations for Youth Sports for recess, and physical education classes (guidance for organized school sports will be published separately);

• Schedules for training all faculty and staff on the implementation of the Health and Safety Plans before providing services to students; and

• A system for ensuring ongoing communication with families around the elements of the local Health and Safety Plan including ways that families can practice safe hygiene in the home.