- Elizabeth Larson
- Posted On
Educators continue serving students at a distance, consider long-term school closures
On March 15, following a meeting of all of the county school district superintendents, it was decided that all public schools would close from March 16 to April 10, as Lake County News has reported.
Three days later, Lake County Public Health Officer Dr. Gary Pace – with whom the superintendents had consulted on their decision – issued a countywide shelter in place order that went into effect early Thursday morning.
Over the past week, in addition to the local shelter in place order and a statewide stay at home order issued by Gov. Gavin Newsom, local educators have been considering another development – Gov. Newsom’s Tuesday statement that schools are likely to remain closed through the end of the current school year.
Lake County Superintendent of Schools Brock Falkenberg said everyone's initial focus was on the time frame up to spring break.
“Our teachers and schools have done a stellar job preparing instructional activities to fill the three-week student dismissal. The teachers I have spoken with are online by 8 a.m. each day, answering emails and phone calls, or video conferencing with students to explain lessons and complex concepts. The hope was to monitor the situation and then return to school for the final quarter,” he said.
“However, the governor’s statement took educators up and down the state by surprise,” said Falkenberg.
He said he hosted a meeting of Lake County superintendents on Wednesday, the morning after the governor's announcement, to begin planning for long term student dismissal.
“Over the next three weeks teachers, schools and the County Office of Education will be working on enhancing online and other forms of non-classroom based instruction,” Falkenberg said.
In addition to keeping the mechanics of education going at a distance, districts also are offering other support.
“All districts in Lake County are continuing to support families by providing meals to everyone under 18 years of age,” said Falkenberg. “Our food service staff have been phenomenal in their flexibility. They are providing individually boxed meals to limit any potential exposure issues.”
He said each district has established different processes to address distribution. Food service directors and superintendents have begun to compare notes to identify best practices and adjust accordingly.
For the two community college districts serving Lake County, Mendocino College and Woodland Community College – which is part of the Yuba Community College District – officials also are preparing for a lengthy closure and have moved instruction online.
Mendocino College notified students via email on Wednesday that all courses and services were to be transitioned to an online or remote platform by Friday.
“We are now expecting for the current situation to last through the end of the Spring semester,” the email explained.
Students were directed to download the Canvas and Zoom apps and to observe local shelter in place orders.
Likewise, in a Friday online message to students, Yuba Community College District Chancellor Douglas Houston said he had decided that remote instruction will continue at all campuses of Woodland Community College and Yuba College through the end of the Spring 2020 semester.
“As you continue through the remainder of your spring classes I encourage you to ‘stick with it’
and not let this disruption cause you to sacrifice your educational goals. If you stay the course, you will succeed,” Houston wrote.
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