SAN DIEGO — UPDATE: On Friday morning San Diego Unified decided to close schools starting on Monday, March 16. The district says they hope to reopen schools on April 6.
As many universities and colleges have moved classes online, San Diego's K-12 schools remained open this week despite coronavirus concerns; however, they say they are taking steps to prevent the spread of COVID-19. On Thursday, San Diego Unified School District announced "more aggressive guidelines in an effort to curb the outbreak."
District officials said they are working with public health partners to ensure the well-being of students, staff, and family.
As of Thursday, at least 10,600 schools have closed or are scheduled to close nationwide, affecting at least 4.9 million students, according to Education Week's latest update.
SDSUD's superintendent Cindy Marten spoke Thursday at a county briefing on coronavirus/COVID-19 about the district's plans and how they are monitoring the situation.
"All decisions are made in concert with the public health officials," said Marten. "We do not make decisions in isolation. And we cannot make decisions without the guidance and approval of the public health officials."
According to SDUSD, the new guidelines the district is implementing are:
Social Distancing
- All events and gatherings of 250 people or more will be canceled or postponed starting Friday, March 13 through April 24. Events and gatherings include concerts, conferences and fan participation at sporting events.
- More guidance on this as it pertains to field trips and school lunch is online.
Continuity of Learning
- The district will continue to offer learning options to all students that are unable to attend school due to issues related to COVID-19.
- The focus is on quality of materials and equitable access for all students.
Student Meals
- The California Department of Education received a special waiver from the United States Department of Agriculture to continue to provide meals to students during a coronavirus-related closure.
- Grab-and-go meals would be distributed at drive-up/walk-up feeding stations at designated schools throughout the district.
- Meals would include lunch and the next day’s breakfast.
- Plans are also in place to feed students should a small number of schools close.
Cleaning and Sanitation
- Custodial staff will ensure common touch areas are sanitized, and that adequate hand washing supplies are available at all sinks. Cleaning supplies and materials to support additional sanitation between custodial services will be provided.
- Transportation staff will disinfect buses daily at the end of their shift. Buses that are exposed to potential COVID will be immediately cleaned.
- In the event of a district-wide closure, all buses will be disinfected, and schools will be deep cleaned and sanitized prior to resuming classes.
Sick leave
- Effective March 9, 2020, the District is creating an alternative paid sick leave absence system for all regular monthly employees.
Daily updates
- SDUSD has established a website related to the coronavirus to inform students, families, staff and the public. The website is updated daily with the most current information on school district recommendations and policies and includes links to the CDC and County Public Department.
