Safe School Re-Opening 2021/22
Updated: August 17, 2021
In consultation with medical professionals, pediatricians, emergency medicine specialists, education workers, and aerosol scientists, Support Our Students calls on the government to adopt the following universal (province-wide) COVID-19 mitigation strategies for safe school reopening for September 2021 in the face of the Delta wave in Alberta. Students under age 12 are not yet eligible for vaccines. Downloading health policies onto individual school boards creates inconsistent & inequitable protection for students across the province. Education is a provincial responsibility, with a legislated obligation to provide safe environments under the Education Act. Protocols and funding for a safe return to school is the DUTY of the provincial government.
Recognizing that:
1. Every child is entitled to access safe education;
2. The global pandemic has amplified inequities and magnified barriers to accessing education;
3. As of mid-August 2021, cases of COVID-19 in Alberta are spreading faster than previous wave;
4. The Delta variant is more transmissible and causing high rates of pediatric hospitalization in USA;
5. Downloading public health policies to individual under-resourced boards creates a patchwork of confusion and inequity across the province;
6. We now know children can be infected with COVID-19 and some can fall seriously ill, with data emerging on long-covid in younger patients;
7. Students under age 12 are not yet eligible for vaccination;
8. We saw the chaotic instability of last school year due to unmitigated caseloads;
We call on the Alberta government to:
Considering the prolonged COVID-19 crisis in Alberta, it is Support Our Students’ position that every measure implemented for a safer school relaunch should be for the long term. Now is the time to invest in standards and protocols, like the ones listed above, that will create lasting safety measures for Alberta’s students, education workers, and broader communities.
Support Our Students Alberta (SOS AB) is a non-profit citizens action group advocating for universally accessible and equitable public education in Alberta.
* ASHRAE = American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers
Recognizing that:
1. Every child is entitled to access safe education;
2. The global pandemic has amplified inequities and magnified barriers to accessing education;
3. As of mid-August 2021, cases of COVID-19 in Alberta are spreading faster than previous wave;
4. The Delta variant is more transmissible and causing high rates of pediatric hospitalization in USA;
5. Downloading public health policies to individual under-resourced boards creates a patchwork of confusion and inequity across the province;
6. We now know children can be infected with COVID-19 and some can fall seriously ill, with data emerging on long-covid in younger patients;
7. Students under age 12 are not yet eligible for vaccination;
8. We saw the chaotic instability of last school year due to unmitigated caseloads;
We call on the Alberta government to:
- Re-instate Alberta Health Services' reporting and monitoring of school cases. The provincial school re-opening guidelines released Aug. 14 indicate that schools will NOT be informed about individual cases of COVID-19. Alberta Health Services (AHS) WON'T notify schools when a student or staff member has tested positive for the illness, and that schools aware of positive cases don't have to report to AHS. This elimination of AHS centralized support for schools is an abdication of basic protective duty by the government during a public health crisis.
- Update protocols to address aerosol transmission. Since it is widely accepted that COVID-19 spreads by aerosol and has the potential to be airborne as well, all schools must undergo a thorough ventilation assessment. Alberta Health Services published a guiding document that confirms the role of aerosol transmission in schools. Alberta Education should at minimum follow this document’s reference to ASHRAE* guidelines for infrastructure upgrades. Many schools have experienced deferred maintenance, so new evaluations and upgrades are essential for lowering risk of spread. Schools should receive HVAC system upgrades, MERV13 filters (HEPA filters at minimum), interior air cleaners, plus other equipment to ensure adequate air exchange in classrooms and indoor spaces. Engineers and geoscientists have updated school ventilation recommendations.
- Provide data transparency & targets for scenario changes. Province must publish detailed school case statistics, in-school transmission data, AND establish clear, publicly announced benchmark targets that trigger closures or scenario transitions. At the community level, need to establish the threshold positivity & infection rates plus case number thresholds for school closures. Once closed, government must establish numerical targets that indicate it is safe again to re-open (e.g. bringing R < 0.6; 300/400 new cases per day). Improve clarity on outbreak declarations, what constitutes outbreak status, and maintain consistent reporting of cases.
- Require indoor masks when age/ability-appropriate, while recognizing that masks are not a sufficient replacement for adequate distance or proper ventilation. The decision to require masking must be based on age as well as individual cognitive abilities. Family physicians or pediatricians should provide guidance when the decision is unclear.
- Implementing a variable class size cap for ALL grades (K-12), in a way that incorporates physical distancing measures, ensuring that all physical spaces used for learning prioritize the 2m distance mandate. Schools should designate cohorts with staggered entry, lunch, recreational and dismissal times. The ability to physically distance is still an important line of defense against droplet transmission IN CONJUNCTION with masking & ventilation against aerosol spread.
- Address transportation for students to and from school, limiting occupancy to reflect physical distancing mandate (2m), incorporate assigned seating, and mandating masks plus proper in-vehicle ventilation when appropriate
- Implement in-school rapid testing program
- Alberta Education, in conjunction with Alberta Health, must provide all the necessary personal protective equipment (PPE) for education workers, including masks, shields, disinfectant, and thermometers.
- Definitively CANCEL all standardized tests at all grades in recognition of the added stress and trauma testing creates for both students and education workers. Understanding also that measuring standards in the third consecutive non-standard pandemic year where the inequity around in-class versus remote learning, and likely frequent disruptions to learning resulting from illnesses and isolation periods will only skew results and magnify inequities. All standardized testing funding should be redirected to COVID-19 mitigation resources.
- Establish a policy for substitute teachers that minimizes risk of inter-school transmission.
- Establish vaccination status reporting and transparency within the school and classroom of students and education workers. Vaccinations for education workers should be mandatory. Education workers work with vulnerable sector and share close spaces with children for extended periods of time per day. Adult vaccination is an important protective layer to mitigate transmission and infection in children.
- In the event of a scenario change (hybrid or complete remote learning), provide adequate resources for families and education workers unable to properly supervise children. Special considerations for children of essential care workers and students with complex needs.
- Take action to reduce community transmission locally prior to school reopening as well as on-going intensive community COVID19 mitigation is essential to protecting schools.
- Commit to the health and safety of Alberta students and education workers during a pandemic as the first priority by providing provincial funding to support every public school in meeting these criteria, recognizing the support needed will vary by school. Committing to stability and consistency of learning for students, as well as preserving interconnected systems of education and health care are vital to mitigating long term effects of the pandemic on children’s well-being.
- Acknowledge that school calendars can be altered or re-openings delayed until the resources and parameters for a safer school environments itemized above can be secured equitably across Alberta.
Considering the prolonged COVID-19 crisis in Alberta, it is Support Our Students’ position that every measure implemented for a safer school relaunch should be for the long term. Now is the time to invest in standards and protocols, like the ones listed above, that will create lasting safety measures for Alberta’s students, education workers, and broader communities.
Support Our Students Alberta (SOS AB) is a non-profit citizens action group advocating for universally accessible and equitable public education in Alberta.
* ASHRAE = American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers
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COVID-19 School Case Tracker 2020/2021 School Year
Support Our Students AB volunteers tirelessly tracked COVID-19 cases in Alberta K-12 schools through the help of parent/community submissions of case notifications. Cases of COVID-19 identified in students or education workers within the school context were logged from September 2020 - June 2021. Over 12,000 cases were tracked by our organization.
Some stats on the SOS COVID-19 School Tracker:
See the archived 2020/21 Tracker data here.
Some stats on the SOS COVID-19 School Tracker:
- Over 4,000 notification letters were received
- We logged 12,067 cases in 1,526 schools and 1,873 alerts/outbreaks
- Over 1200 volunteer hours were poured into the tracker
- Over 430,000 Albertans visited the tracker a total of 4 million times
See the archived 2020/21 Tracker data here.
Coalition for Safe School Re-Opening (2020/21)
We invited the consultation of medical experts and education workers to form the Coalition for Safe School Re-Opening to put forth a comprehensive list of recommendations to ensure safe and equitable schools, while mitigating the risk of COVID-19 transmission in the school context. See September 2020 and January 2021 recommendations.
Recommendations for the 2021/22 school year will be available soon, considering the province has decided to lift basic monitoring of COVID-19 as of August 16, 2021.
Recommendations for the 2021/22 school year will be available soon, considering the province has decided to lift basic monitoring of COVID-19 as of August 16, 2021.
School Safety Tours
May 21, 2020 (CALGARY) -- In an open letter to Education Minister Adriana LaGrange, Support our Students (SOS) calls for the Ministry of Education to make parent safety school tours a mandatory part of their re-launch plan. In this way, parents can ensure their schools have followed whatever measures are put in place to limit COVID-19 transmission.
SOS has provided three checklists (elementary, middle and high school) for parents to review and consider what a safe return looks like for them. Parents can use this resource to engage with the school community around what conditions they want to see in their schools, and to refer to as a checklist during a safety tour.
SOS has provided three checklists (elementary, middle and high school) for parents to review and consider what a safe return looks like for them. Parents can use this resource to engage with the school community around what conditions they want to see in their schools, and to refer to as a checklist during a safety tour.