Gov. Kate Brown and the Oregon Department of Education on Monday announced new guidelines for schools that allow 3 feet of physical distancing under certain conditions.
“After careful review by the Oregon Health Authority and the Oregon Department of Education, Oregon will shift to allowing 3 feet of physical distancing under certain conditions, including county COVID-19 case rate levels for students in middle and high school,” the ODE declared in a statement Monday.
The ODE stressed that it’s up to local schools to determine whether they allow students that close together, and it noted that students must still maintain 6-foot distances when passing students from other classrooms in hallways between periods, or when eating. It also provides guidance for removal of the 35 square feet-per-person requirement now in place.
Since most Oregon schools, including Sweet Home, are on spring break this week, administrators have time to plot their strategies, said Sweet Home Supt. Tom Yahraes, who called the announcement “great news.”
“The Sweet Home School District Team will thoroughly review today’s new guidance and work with parents, educators and staff to fine-tune plans at the local level,” he said in a letter released by the district Monday afternoon.
Key points in the state’s announcement include:
– Elementary schools must maintain at least 3 feet of physical distance between students to the maximum extent possible.
– Middle and high school must maintain at least 3 feet of physical distance between students to the maximum extent possible, when the county case rate is less than 200 cases per 100,000. In the weeks of March 7 through March 20, Linn County’s case rate per 100,000 is 90.1, an increase of about 50 percent over the previous two-week period, which saw the county drop from “High” to “Moderate.”
– Middle and high school must maintain at least 6 feet of physical distance between students to the maximum extent possible, when the county case rate is above or equal to 200 cases per 100,000.
– All schools must maintain 6 feet between staff at all times and 6 feet between staff and students to the maximum extent possible.
” We are guardedly optimistic,” Yahraes said. “This welcome news will not be like flipping a switch to a ‘back-to -normal’ school schedule and routine.
“However, the good news is Sweet Home has already developed multiple operational scenarios to scale up our in-person learning. We are up to the task to incorporate and maximize the new guidance to get our students more learning time in our schools, while not sacrificing health and safety protocols.
“Also, we will continue to offer comprehensive distance learning to students and families who wish to continue with the 100% distance learning model.”