Screening, distancing among initial plans to reopen Sacramento City Unified schools

Sacramento City Unified School District released a draft of the precautions and recommendations for the fall as they plan to reopen schools.

The 44-page draft laid out precautions students and staff must take, which include daily student monitoring for symptoms and temperature screenings on campus.

The district also included plans on how to mitigate as campuses reopen, including how to physically distance students, provide safe transportation for students who take the bus, improve ventilation and isolate ill children on campus.

The document did not include school schedules, which are expected to be released later this month. The document released Tuesday stated that schools will reopen in the fall with modifications to programs and services, as other surrounding school districts have also announced.

Much of the recommendations paralleled guidelines that both Sacramento County officials and state officials announced in previous weeks: 6 feet of physical distancing, hygiene practices and classroom set up that would prevent the virus from spreading. Students are required to wear masks and if they do not have one, school officials will provide them.

The district’s guidelines also included procedures on how to manage situations if a child on campus displays signs of illness, providing designated and isolated care rooms at each campus, and provides parents guidelines on how to take temperatures at home as well.

Screening procedures will be in place at all campuses to prevent ill students from coming to school, according to the document. Entry and exit locations will be set up at schools to ensure families follow precautions.

Staff will take students’ temperatures, ask students if they have any signs or symptoms of illness, and staff will look at the student.

Bus drivers or bus aides will be responsible for screening each rider with the same screening methods.

Students must practice physical distancing on school buses and wear face coverings. The district will mark or block seats that must be left vacant, according to the document. Buses will be cleaned and disinfected daily.

Teachers, union discuss more changes

Children will still have recess, according to the safety plan. Schools may stagger the playground schedule just as classrooms are staggered. Hallways will have traffic flow arrow signs similar to those in some stores around the city to help guide students and maintain distance from one another. The district is canceling activities and events that require larger gatherings such as field trips, assemblies and special performances.

The district plans to survey families to learn what their preferences are on how to reopen schools.

About 500 Sacramento city teachers and SEIU union leaders met virtually Wednesday in a town hall meeting to discuss how to safely reopen schools. More than 95 percent of meeting participants said the district should immediately survey and seek input from parents on their preference on distance learning or in-person hybrid school schedules. The overwhelming majority of teachers in the union said a distance learning-only model needs to be available for families. The teachers union proposed to the district to implement an online only model for families who choose to keep children at home, and a two-day rotation hybrid model for others. Several other districts in the region adopted similar programs in recent weeks.

Union leaders in the district said the changes that the district outlined would require more custodians, nurses and improved ventilation at older schools.

But the district currently has a student-to-nurse ratio of 3,500-to-1, according to the teachers union. The union has long called for additional nurses and counselors for the district.

Sacramento City Unified serves more than 42,000 students at nearly 80 campuses. The district is set to physically open schools for instruction Sept. 3, which is shortly after neighboring districts in the region.

In March, a Sutterville substitute teacher died from coronavirus. The Greenhaven church she volunteered at closed and reported five confirmed cases of the COVID-19 illness among members. The district physically closed schools, along with the rest of the county.

In June, an employee at John Still Middle School in Meadowview tested positive for coronavirus.

This story was originally published July 9, 2020 at 5:00 AM.