New COVID-19 Dashboard and a reminder of pausing transition to blended learning, shift to distance learning for all grades
Last Monday we shared with you that we would be pausing the transition to blended learning for students in fourth, fifth and sixth grade. We also announced that students in ECSE, pre-K, kindergarten through third grade, and all students receiving on-site special education and English language development services would transition back to full-time distance learning beginning Monday, November 16.
We made this difficult decision because of the sharp increases in positive COVID-19 cases in our community. Since making this announcement on Monday, Ramsey County's rate has gone up from 38.8 to 61.6 cases per 10,000 residents – a nearly 60% increase. This is more significant than projected and underlines the fact that COVID-19 is very much present in our community.
On Friday we had to make the decision to shift all classes and programs at Harambee Elementary to distance learning beginning tomorrow (Monday, November 9) because the number of staff who are currently in quarantine or isolation made it so we could not staff the health office and all of the school's classrooms.
We will continue to observe the conditions in our schools and adjust our plans as necessary. We are appreciative of our community and the remarkable patience and understanding shown during this challenging time.
New COVID-19 Dashboard
We have created a new dashboard to keep our community informed on the presence of COVID-19 in our district. The dashboard provides information about the number of positive cases we've had in staff and students who have been present in our school buildings while infectious. It also shows the number of students and staff who are unable to be in buildings because they are in quarantine or isolation. We hope these data points are helpful in understanding the prevalence of COVID-19 in our school community.
