Vavals children are eager to return to school but shes also concerned for their safety. Illinois health officials reported 26,062 new COVID-19 cases in the past week, along with 197 additional deaths and over 143,000 new vaccine doses administered, according to statistics from Covid-19 Illinois. She also pointed to a state law that gives the superintendent the authority to declare a requirement to use remote learning days or blended remote learning days for a school district, multiple school districts, a region, or the entire state during a gubernatorial disaster proclamation. Were sitting on the threshold of a decision point about what to do about masking in many places, said Benjamin Linas, an infectious disease specialist at Boston University. Though the latest closure figures to be much shorter, many parents are feeling the frustration of additional setbacks to their . Data also illustrate the significant impact of the pandemic and remote learning on student enrollment, attendance, and academic achievement. Chicago Public Schools CEO Pedro Martinez said he expects schools to reopen after winter break but that more classes could go remote amid a surge in COVID due to the omicron variant. Pre-kindergarten instructor Angela Panush helps a student with his lunch as others in the classroom eat at their desks on the first day of in-person learning at Dawes Elementary School in Chicago in January. Utah has banned local mask mandates, so Rae Garrison, the principal of West Jordan Middle School, just south of Salt Lake City, is feeling uneasy as she prepares to welcome her 1,200 7th, 8th, and 9th graders back to school Aug. 16. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads. In early August, Pritzker announced Illinois students preschool through 12 would be required to wear masks during school and indoor sports and activities, as reported on QuadCities.com. Public school districts, mostly across the Northeast and Midwest, closed this week as the omicron variant of coronavirus surges following the winter break and the country's students face a. However, staff must report from 9:30 a.m.-5 p.m. for a . More than 125 schools statewide including several in the Quad-Cities area have been hit with significant outbreaks of covid, according to the Illinois Department of Health. Statewide there are no plans to reinstate online learning as the decision is typically made at a school district level. Chalkbeat Chicagos reporters will be there to report the news you need. Sharisa Vaval, a community health worker navigators supervisor with Community Assistance Programs, found out her son couldnt attend Morgan Park High School for two weeks last spring when he was blocked from completing the schools online health screening. Their concerns, however, raise questions about options left for families in the absence of pandemic-related allowances, such as when Gov. The 2021 Harmful Algal Bloom Program comprises two parts: Routine Monitoring and Event Response. If infection numbers continue to creep up, Hall believes CPS will just shut (in-person school) down.. How can the board allow, let alone require, students to return if the COVID-19 vaccine isnt available to them?, Calling the proposed requirement reckless and inexcusable, he asked the board to please explain to me how on earth you can justify this resolution.. - September 21, 2021 But how will this go over with my parents?. Example video title will go here for this video. ISBE spokeswoman Jackie Matthews said the resolution was based on feedback from the field and supports a declaration by state Superintendent Carmen Ayala which is enforceable. Consequently, this list will no longer be updated unless case rates again force a substantial number of schools to close. We know how to do this.. officials and parents are calling to close schools and return to remote learning. "He's very excited to be back in person and with his friends," Stephanie Mowray said of her son, who just started 5th grade. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. To read about school responses to the coronavirus pandemic in others states, click one of the following links below: The chart below shows coronavirus statistics from countries across the world. Leak, superintendent of Community Consolidated Schools District 168 in Sauk Village, said shes been getting questions about who would determine whether a students quarantine qualified and what the requirement would mean for students old enough to get the vaccine. Of Illinois 849 school districts, 423 are providing blended or hybrid learning, 398 are fully in person and only 28 are fully remote, according to state data updated May 3. Fighting the Delta Variant: School Reopening Just Got a Lot More Complicated, along with the American Academy of Pediatrics, new court ruling, which affirmed Indiana Universitys, seven states, according to CNN, have forbidden. Parents are bracing for changes as the delta variant spreads. J.B. Pritzker's school mask executive order. Democrat-heavy districts remain most likely to stay partly closed. Prior to writing for District Administration he worked in daily news all over the country, from the NYC suburbs to the Rocky Mountains, Silicon Valley and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Kelly also suggests creating school-life balance. Were going to have to quarantine students who dont want to be quarantined, and do [simultaneous] online and in-person [instruction], which is the last thing my teachers want to be doing.. Last year, as his sons grades started slipping in a remote CPS classroom, Hall pulled him from the district to enroll in Midlothians St. Christopher Catholic School, which was offering steady in-person instruction. By the end of the 2020-2021 school year, about 66% of students nationwide were in states that left closure decisions to schools or districts, 33% were in states with state-ordered in-person instruction, and 1% were in states with state-ordered regional school closures. All data comes from the Common Core of Data provided by the National Center for Education Statistics. !function(){"use strict";window.addEventListener("message",(function(e){if(void 0!==e.data["datawrapper-height"]){var t=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var a in e.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r=0;r