Cheney schools to partially reopen Oct. 5

CHENEY – School district administrators laid out a phased return to in-person instruction to school board members at a special workshop last Thursday, Sept. 24, that if approved in a special meeting, Sept. 30, could have some students back in classrooms on a limited basis as early as Oct. 5.

According to information presented at the workshop, special education students with disabilities and preschool for students in the Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program (ECEAP) could begin in-person instruction on Monday, Oct. 5. The proposed education model would feature two half days of in-person and two half days of distance learning.

K-5 special education students would then be phased in beginning Wednesday, Oct. 7, students needing more than 50 percent special education instruction in schools Monday, Wednesday and Friday with eventual transition to all five days. The schedule for students requiring less than 50 percent special education would be one-half day per week phasing to full time by grade level.

Finally, students whose parents chose to return to onsite kindergarten from distance learning would begin full day instruction, Monday – Friday, starting Oct. 12. School district staff began contacting these parents Sept. 25 to see if they still intended to have their children return to onsite learning, with parents who indicated they wanted to remain in distance learning the entire school year invited to contact the district to discuss in-person options.

The school district began onsite instruction Sept. 21 with English Language students attending one day a week whose level is newcomer to level 2 along with McKinney Vento (homeless) and foster youth students. So far, 177 of these K-12 students have been attending onsite.

Superintendent Rob Roettger said the district’s decision stemmed from guidance received last week from Spokane Regional Health District Health Officer Dr. Bob Lutz, who announced his support for bringing back the youngest learners and a gradual phasing in of onsite instruction for grades 1-2. Lutz explained schools, both public and private, to include Spokane Public Schools, Central Valley, Cheney and West Valley, have been working closely with Spokane Regional Health District (SRHD) to develop plans for the eventual return to in-person learning.  

“We’re watching the data closely, and although our county remains in the high range, we feel confident in the plans these school districts have developed for a safe return to in-person learning,” Lutz said in a news release.

Roettger said there are still variables in the first phase of a two-part plan to reopen schools, specifically questions on transportation and staffing. The latter will likely take shape as staff determine the number of parents who want to return to in-person instruction whether they indicated it on survey forms in August or not.

Returning to onsite instruction will require close adherence to the state’s health and safety protocols. Daily health screenings — including temperature checks — will be required of all students, as well as all-day wearing of face coverings and physical distancing.

Assistant Superintendent Tom Arlt said the district is choosing to follow a cohort model of instruction where students are assigned to a specific classroom and teacher and do not intermingle with other teacher’s classes for the entire day — even eating meals in their classroom. The district has also purchased additional cleaning supplies, face masks and has hired staff to perform increased sanitation measures.

Even with these steps, Roettger said the district is going to need to be ready should coronavirus outbreaks occur among students, staff and families.

“We’re not going to be able to eliminate the risk, but we want to do what we can to mitigate the risk,” he said. “We take this seriously and want to make sure we get a handle on it.”

Roettger reiterated that reopening schools was contingent upon guidance from health officials and how the rate of infection spread was in the county. With K-2 students showing the least likelihood of transmitting the disease while older students are more closely aligned with the spread seen in adults, additional school reopening could take a while.

“By the time you work your way up to high school, OK, that could be four months from now,” Roettger added.

John McCallum can be reached at [email protected].