Superintendent Message
CSD Superintendent Dr. Carrie Andrews, September 11, 2020
Dear Cambrian Families,
Last Friday, September 4th Governor Newsom released a newly refined four-tier system in which counties must show consistent success in stemming the transmission of the COVID-19 in order to reopen schools and specific types of businesses. Every county in California is assigned to a color tier based on its test positivity and adjusted COVID-19 case rate. At a minimum, counties must remain in a tier for at least 3 weeks before moving forward to a lesser restrictive tier. The California Department of Public Health reviews the data weekly and tiers are updated on Tuesdays.
This past Tuesday, September 8th, Santa Clara County downgraded from Tier 1 (Purple tier) the most restrictive tier to Tier 2 a lower risk tier (Red tier).
In counties in Tier 1 (Purple tier), public schools remain closed, however the California Department of Public Health allows to provide “limited instruction, targeted support services, and facilitation of distance learning in small group environments for a specified subset of children and youth.” Once a county enters Tiers 2-4 (Red, Orange, or Yellow tiers), schools will be able to bring back students for instruction ranging from small groups to in-person classes following the requirements/guidelines outlined by the state and local health departments. A county must be in that tier for at least 14 days and is also dependent on local county health department guidelines before reopening.
With all that said, what does that mean for Cambrian School District and our students? If Santa Clara County maintains the current status of Tier 2 (Red tier) from September 8th for 14 consecutive days, then September 22 schools have the authority to reopen under the state's tiered framework, unless a more restrictive county directive is in place. Below outlines the process of communication as to when you would receive communication as to grade levels returning to in-person instruction when approved to do so.
While we remain optimistic, we do not know what the next two weeks will bring and whether we will remain in Tier 2 (Red tier). However, we anticipate the following phase-in of in-person instruction. Please note that CSD is taking a deliberative and cautious approach. Our staff and families must have the confidence to return when we are allowed to do so. As of right now, this is what we have in place moving forward during these uncertain times with COVID-19 in Santa Clara County. Listed below is a timeline of the next steps at this point.
Afternoon Extended Day Child Care (Currently open since the first day of school)
Cambrian Extended Child Care for grades TK-8 has already been open under Child Care Guidance since the first day of school. Health safety protocols and 12:1 cohort ratio set by Santa Clara County Public Health Department specifically for child care operations are in place. We will continue refining our practices so we are prepared as more students return to campus for services. If interested in having your child a part of the afternoon Extended Care Program you can sign up at the Cambrian Extended Care website.
Step 1: 1:1 Targeted Specialized Services (Starting next 2 weeks)
We are planning to bring students to campus for “targeted support services” such as one on one special education assessments. In addition, we will bring students that have specialized targeted services for limited instruction. Services will be held outside or in a classroom with physical distance, air circulation, and sneeze guards with only one staff member and one student. We believe these services to be lower risk and the health/safety of staff and students can be safeguarded.
Step 2: Small Targeted Cohorts
Currently, the small cohort guidelines while school remains closed allows for “limited instruction, target support services and facilitation of distance learning in small group environments for a specified subset of children and you.”
This phase may present the challenge of matching students who wish to return with the properly credentialed staff who can provide appropriate services and are able to return.
Step 3: After 14 Days of Santa Clara County being on Red Tier 2: We have the capacity to have students return for in-person learning in stable cohorts.
If we remain in Tier 2 (Red tier) in Santa Clara County Schools for 14 days, we would have the capacity to reopen in a phased approach by grade levels. September 22nd we will know if we meet the 14 days in a row in Santa Clara County.
Our objective would be to begin slowly bringing grade levels back with the earliest being mid-October with the hopes of having all students back prior to Thanksgiving break. Of course, this will all be contingent upon whether to meet the 14-day requirement on September 22nd. If this is not possible I will let you know our next steps moving forward.
As state and county directives permit, we will bring students back for in-person instruction in a phased approach by grade level clusters and begin moving toward a broader larger scale reopening. For instance, we will cluster grade level groups like PK-1st and 2-3 and so forth. When we approach this phase of the capacity to reopen for in-person instruction, parents will be notified with two weeks’ notice to transition to the new in-person routine.
As we progress I will keep you informed when we are able to transition to a larger scale of in-person instruction at our schools. Also, just a reminder that if you are within the full distance learning titled “Virtual School Program” during the current school year the returning to school does not apply. Thank you for your patience as we all navigate these uncharted waters together. We are proud to serve the families of Cambrian School District, whether through distance learning or in-person (though we sure miss seeing our amazing students face-to-face!)
Have a wonderful weekend. We are CAMBRIAN.
CAMBRIAN SCHOOL DISTRICT
Email: klavond@cambriansd.com
Website: www.cambriansd.org
Location: 4115 Jacksol Drive, San Jose, CA, USA
Phone: (408) 377-2103
Facebook: facebook.com/CambrianSchoolDistrict
Twitter: @Supt_Andrews