Covid Update from Central Office

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Special Note from MCPS Central Office

Dear MCPS Community,

We are writing to inform you of a change in how decisions will be made regarding whether schools will transition from in-person to virtual learning due to positive COVID-19 cases. We have heard from families, students and staff and recognize that the pandemic’s changing landscape continues to generate concern for many community members. These modifications result from clarifications from the state of Maryland on the appropriate use of thresholds for transitioning to virtual learning – and bring MCPS into closer alignment with how large school systems across the country are keeping schools safe amidst similar COVID-related challenges. We appreciate our community’s patience and perseverance as we navigate these dynamics.

The state of Maryland does not currently recommend any automatic trigger or threshold for the suspension of in-person learning. Therefore, MCPS will no longer use a threshold of 5% or more of unrelated students and staff in a school who test positive in a 14-day period to consider a transition to virtual learning. The 11 school communities that are currently engaged in virtual learning will receive more information by Sunday afternoon regarding next steps.

Moving forward, MCPS and the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) will examine schools on a case-by-case basis to determine if any particular school needs to transition to virtual learning for a designated period of time. Factors considered will continue to include the number of students and staff who have tested positive; the number of students in quarantine; the number of staff absent for COVID-related reasons; and the level of spread of the virus in the school.

Robust mitigation measures—including masking, distribution of KN-95 masks, enhanced ventilation, high vaccination rates and increased access to testing—are in place and contribute to keeping schools safe. Identifying COVID-19 cases remains an important step for slowing the spread of the virus. Any student who tests positive will be required to isolate for 10 days from the date of the positive test or 10 days from the onset of symptoms, whichever comes first.

By early next week, take-home rapid test kits will be distributed to all students and staff. These easy-to-use tests will reveal the prevalence of the virus in each school community. They will quickly identify positive cases, allow COVID-19 positive individuals to isolate, and further reduce the spread of the virus in schools and offices.

Parents are asked to help students administer these tests at home and to submit whether their child has tested positive or negative using the MCPS COVID-19 Reporting Form. It is important for parents to report all results, both positive and negative, when using the rapid test kits distributed in schools. (Parents should continue to report positive results from tests students receive outside of school, as well.)

We recognize that there is a great deal of concern about the rise in COVID-19 cases in our schools and community. Please know that we understand these concerns and are committed to maintaining a safe environment for students and staff.

Sincerely,

Monifa B. McKnight, Ed.D.
Interim Superintendent of Schools

James Bridgers, Ph.D.
Acting Chief Health Officer
Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services

fire these two now. what is the process to replace the interim superintendent?

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:The rate of death during this wave is a lot smaller than any previous wave. In addition, the majority of hospitalized are unvaccinated. But I know that you don’t care about facts. You are impervious to new information, kinda like the “the election was stolen” crowd.

The majority of kids in MoCo ages 5-12 are still unvaccinated. Do I think that's dumb? CHRIST yes! Do I think any of those kids deserve to die, be hospitalized, or deal with long-COVID because their parents are dumb? CHRIST no! And that's not even considering their younger siblings who *can't* be vaccinated, or their elderly relatives who might be vaccinated but still be vulnerable - all of whom deserve consideration. Our family doesn't really fall into any of these categories either, so I get that it's easy to feel safe and assume that everyone should just get with your program. But this is public school. It exists to serve a large community, including people in vastly different circumstances. If you're only able to take your own circumstances into account, maybe YOU'RE the one who should "just homeschool."

5-11 are 9% of the population,5% is now fully vaccinated. So more than half of 5-11 are vaccinated. 12-15 year olds almost 100% vaccinated. Where are you getting your information from ? https://app.powerbigov.us/view?r=eyJrIjoiZDUxZTUzNWMtMjk1MS00ZjAyLTliMWYtMDdlMjY0MmQ5ZTc3IiwidCI6IjZlMDFiMWY5LWIxZTUtNDA3My1hYzk3LTc3ODA2OWEwYWQ2NCJ9&pageName=ReportSection81710217dba9873d424d


92% fully vaccinated for 12 and over https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.localdvm.com/news/maryland/nearly-30000-young-children-vaccinated-in-montgomery-county/amp/

Like I said, you are impervious to facts.

Uh, I really don’t think you know how to read these charts. That’s not what that link is saying.

Really? Why don’t you educate me?

DP. It says 5% of the *vaccinated* population is kids 5-11, not that 5% of the total population is vaccinated kids 5-11.

You are clearly not very smart it says 5% vaccinated as a % of total population. You have to highlight the 5% bar and it tells you the raw numbers of how many 5-11 received 1 vaccine vs 2 vaccines. 30,647 fully vaccinated. 49% with 1 dose, 34% with 2 doses. That’s data from 12/27/21, the numbers are higher now. If 5-11 are 9% of the total population or 90,000 did you think that only 5% or 4,500 are vaccinated?

I’m not sure why you’re writing it that way when you’re confirming what I said. The 5% referred to the vaccinated population. Of the set of people that are vaccinated, 5% of them are 5-11 years old.