Governor Brown's mandate forces schools to reopen

Posted March 2021

By Tristan Hansen

Staff Editor

Due to a recent statewide mandate, David Douglas students will once again be seeing the insides of their classrooms, bringing an end to over a year without in-person instruction.

It was almost exactly a year ago, on March 12, 2020, that Kate Brown first ordered all Oregon K-12 public schools to close. Initially, schools were scheduled to reopen around two weeks later, on April 1, 2020, but as virus transmission spiraled out of control and eventually proved everyone’s worst fears correct, this date was pushed further and further back. First, it was April 28. Then, it was until the end of the 2019-20 school year. Now, however, we finally have a set of confirmed dates: March 29 for elementary students and April 19 for secondary students.

This was the schedule put forth by Brown on Friday, in an executive order directed to the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) and Education Department (ODE). In addition to providing this set of deadlines, the executive order also requires ODE and OHA to issue guidance and review existing requirements and advisory metrics. Schools will be permitted to operate through either a hybrid or fully in-person model.

“I could not be more relieved that we have reached a point in this pandemic when Oregon’s children can finally relinquish some of the immense burdens they have so bravely borne over this past year," Brown stated in the letter. "I feel so much hope for Oregon’s kids, their parents and their schools, as we continue to navigate this pandemic.”

The decision to reopen schools comes after months of steady decline in Covid infections across the state, particularly in the Portland metro area. Between Feb. 4 and 27, Washington, Multnomah, and Clackamas counties registered infection rates below 100 per 100,000 residents, a decrease from the high of 500 per 100,000 residents experienced during December. It also reflects the broader national trend in favor of reopening schools, with other states, such as Arizona, recently moving to reopen theirs.

This national trend is perhaps spurred on by the increasingly widespread belief in the scientific community that reopening schools is safe - provided the proper precautions are taken and community transmission is low. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, “school transmission mirrors but does not drive community transmission”. Moreover, the CDC states that in-school transmission is generally lower than, or at least comparable to rates of community transmission, and cites a study finding “no effect of school reopening on COVID-19 hospitalization rates when baseline hospitalization rates are low or moderate.” However, they caution that, “significant secondary transmission of SARS-CoV-2 infection can and does occur in school settings when mitigation strategies are not implemented or are not followed.”

“Whether or not public schools should return kids to the classroom this spring is no longer up for discussion: the science and data is clear, schools can return to in-person instruction with a very low risk of COVID-19 transmission, particularly with a vaccinated workforce,” Brown states in her executive order.

Brown’s judgement was met with cautious support from the Oregon Education Association, Oregon’s statewide teacher’s union

“We hear, understand, and share the frustration expressed by many in our communities about the uncertainty this pandemic has caused for our public education system, and the long-standing educational disparities that continue to be exacerbated by reopening plans that fail to truly center student equity," the OEA stated on Friday, March 4. "We urge our local school districts to continue to work in good faith with local educators to craft plans that will truly serve all of our students, and we are committed to expanding in-person instruction at our schools this spring.”

Their tone was notably more amicable and cordial than many other teacher’s unions when the question of reopening has been raised in the past. The Lake Oswego School District, for instance, abandoned plans to reopen elementary schools in early February after their union harshly rebuked them, stating “[our members] want to live and not be responsible for killing their families or sickening their students.”

In a letter sent out to district families and staff, David Douglas indicated the district is likely to re-open using a hybrid model in which hand-washing, mask-wearing, and social distancing is required, and expressed support for the executive order.

“The DDSD Board of Directors supports this executive order, and we look forward to having our students and staff back in schools and classrooms as quickly as possible,” stated Board Chair Andrea Valderrama.

The mandate to reopen schools directly overrides the School Board’s earlier decision to remain in CDL and begin Limited In Person Instruction (LIPI) to complete the school year. The previous LIPI model would have seen a select number of students who are struggling academically, emotionally, physically, and/or mentally receive additional resources and limited in-person instruction to supplement CDL. However, with Governor Brown’s new executive order, David Douglas have had to begin work on an entirely new model and new schedule.

At the High School and Middle School level, schedules are still actively being discussed. At the Elementary level, meanwhile, the district plans to reopen under a hybrid model that accommodates both those who wish to return to school and those who wish to remain in CDL. Students who opt for in-person learning will receive two days of instruction at school and two days of instruction at home each week, while students who remain in CDL will continue operating under the same schedule. The district states that, under this model, teachers will teach from their classrooms with a safe number of students present, while everyone else attends virtually. They tout this model as allowing them to “seamlessly and rapidly go back to full CDL” if need be.

In a recent community survey, David Douglas estimated that, if given the option, 45% of students would return to school immediately, while the remaining 55% may be more hesitant. The district plans on distributing a more formal survey in the coming days (at least to elementary families) to more accurately gauge interest in the in-person and CDL options.