VICTOR JOECKS: Reopen CCSD

If it’s safe enough to have 1,000 people at a convention, it’s safe enough to put kids in schools.

On Tuesday, Gov. Steve Sisolak relaxed restrictions on group gatherings, including at churches. People may now meet in groups of 250. Conventions can have 1,000 attendees — not including staff. Larger facilities, such as Allegiant Stadium, can open at 10 percent capacity. That means 6,500 fans could be there in-person to watch UNLV football.

These were much-needed and long-overdue moves. But there’s still one more thing that needs to reopen — the Clark County School District.

After King Sisolak’s pronouncement, the School Board said it would hear additional information on Oct. 8 about reopening with a vote possible on Oct. 22.

That’s not soon enough. The district should be preparing — now — to bring students back.

It’s been obvious for months that in-person classes are safe for students. In the entire country, 32 children ages five to 14 have died from coronavirus since February. Obviously, every single death is devastating, but some perspective is in order. During that same time, 106 children in that age range have died from pneumonia.

The bigger concern is that students will spread the disease to teachers. Some instructors will be in high-risk groups because of their age or pre-existing conditions. That’s a real concern, but it doesn’t have to be an insurmountable one. Teachers older than 60 or with serious pre-existing conditions can take extra precautions — such as teaching behind a plexiglass barrier. In some cases, vulnerable teachers can do online classes for families who prefer to stay online.

It’s not like the district would be doing anything groundbreaking. Schools in several European countries reopened in the spring. “You cannot see any negative effects from the reopening of schools,” Peter Andersen of the Danish Serum Institute said.

It’s not just overseas. The Washoe County School District reopened in mid-August with in-person learning. Elementary students returned full time and middle and high school students are doing a hybrid of in-person and online. Around one-third of students are doing full-time distance learning.

The 70,000 students and employees had experienced just 55 known cases of the virus as of the end of September. It’s likely most of those infections occurred outside of school. These results aren’t an accident. The Washoe district has robust contingency procedures in place to prevent an outbreak.

There’s a lot of room between “cough on everyone you see” and lock yourself indoors until the vaccine comes. Too bad Superintendent Jesus Jara isn’t being proactive and attempting to find it.

Distance learning, especially for elementary students, is a disaster — for the children who show up. As of mid-September, around 30,000 students — or 10 percent — may not even have had regular access to a device and internet connection.

In August, I submitted a public records request asking for district attendance by school and race. This information could provide insights on which students are most hurt by online learning. The district first said it would provide a further response on Sept, 17, then on Sept. 25. Now it says it will have another response — presumably another delay — on Oct. 9.

There is no good explanation for this. Perhaps district officials don’t know. Perhaps they’re too disorganized to track such basic information. Or perhaps the information looks so bad they can’t bring themselves to release it.

Whatever the reason, the path forward is clear. Reopen the CCSD. Don’t wait a month either. Do it now. CCSD students have waited long enough.

Contact Victor Joecks at vjoecks@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4698. Follow @victorjoecks on Twitter.