Mt. Pleasant discusses shift to hybrid model

MT. PLEASANT - The Mt. Pleasant school board continued discussions about its hybrid plan as well as coming changes from the state about the definition of a close contact and exposure to the coronavirus among students.

At a work session on Monday evening, Superintendent John Henriksen informed the board local Public Health Sirector Shelley Van Dorin had confirmed the Iowa Department of Public Health and Department of Education would be revising protocols on close contacts for students.

'As protocol now … if the student is wearing a mask and the positive is wearing a mask then the close contact student does not have to quarantine. They can stay in school,” Henriksen reported to the board. Previously, a close contact was defined as someone who was within six feet of an infected person for 15 minutes or more.

Henriksen said this would mostly affect students at the district high school. As of Monday, 96 high schoolers were quarantined after being identified as close contacts and 12 students had tested positive. High school principal Todd Liechty said as many as 76 students could return to school the following day under the new guidance.

Board President Jennifer Crull said she felt the district may see some pushback from parents about the new protocol.

'Is there a study that says this is all OK? I guess that's my question. Does the data back up that the ability to really pass it on, if you've been exposed, is pretty minimal?” Crull said.

Board member Willy Amos noted that 'in all theory” the district should not have been quarantining students to begin with 'because if the masks work, it shouldn't be a concern.” Amos said he has heard from community members who were confused as to why students were being quarantined if masks are required.

Crull added that mitigation strategies note people should wear masks while maintaining 6 feet of distance and asked how easily it would be to adequately social distance in classrooms.

At the high school, Liechty said 'not very many” classrooms would allow for social distancing, but the school 'can give the kids the flexibility to not be a close contact.”

The principal explained that if a student is aware another student 'goes out and carouses in large groups and doesn't wear a mask,” then the student can choose not to sit by that other student.

'Or if he's the only option, then I probably need to make sure that I go watch class from the back of the room for a while or I sit in my seat as little as I can, being respectful to the class, because I don't want to be by him. The kids know better than we know about who they should avoid,” Liechty said.

The principal also reported the school had not been notified of any close contact students testing positive due to an exposure that happened at school. Liechty added that in conversations with quarantined high schoolers, several were 'aggravated” about having to quarantine in light of the mitigation strategies and precautions students and the school were already taking.

Board member Angie Blint asked whether the students, who would have been identified as a close contact previously, would still be informed of potential exposure to a positive case and whether that will remain the district's responsibility.

'If you don't notify, I think that's where you're going to get the backlash from parents,” board member Josh Maher added.

Maher asked whether the district could still complete contact tracing and inform parents but allow families to make the decision on whether close contact students return to school.

'If we don't, that's where the parents are going to come back to us and say, ‘You knew this kid was here with COVID. Why didn't you let me know that my kid was right there in contact with them?'” Maher explained.

Henriksen said he didn't know what the protocol would be on contact tracing and informing parents under the new guidance but would look into an answer for the board.

During the work session, the board discussed potential changes to the district's hybrid model. Should the district go to the hybrid model, students in pre-K through fifth grade would continue to attend class daily while students sixth through 12th grade will be divided approximately in half alphabetically and would attend classes for five days across a two-week period. The rest of the time, they would work online.

Director of Instruction Kathleen Gavin and Liechty said teachers continue to prepare for a potential switch. Gavin added the district is working with teachers who currently handle remote learning and is 'trying to give them additional time” to work with remote students.

The board discussed ways to help district parents better understand when the board would begin to consider going to a hybrid model. Amos said he has often seen misinformation spread across social media sites like Facebook.

In particular, the board discussed how parents did not understand the absenteeism rate that would be a factor in determining going to a hybrid model for any one school building. With close to 100 students quarantined at the high school as of Monday, Amos said he's heard parents ask why the school has yet to go into hybrid.

Under the district's return-to-learn plan, the board would consider a switch to the hybrid model if there is substantial controlled community spread - 15 to 20 percent positivity in the county and 10 percent absenteeism among students expected for in-person learning.

The board member said parents do not understand quarantined students are not factored into the school's absentee numbers. The absentee rate is determined by students out due to sickness, either those who have tested positive for the coronavirus or other illnesses.

Henriksen said the district could add definitions on their COVID-19 tracking sheets as well as look into giving more frequent updates through social media or the district website.