Edhat Staff
By edhat staff
A private high school in Orcutt closes after reopening as the Goleta School Board voted to resume in-person learning in January.
Saint Joseph High School reopened its doors for in-person learning last month but after a student tested positive for COVID-19, Principal Erinn Dougherty decided to close again as an extra safety precaution.
“In an over abundance of precaution we decided that the safest course of action would be to close the school for two weeks,” said Dougherty in a Facebook Live video.
Dougherty confirmed there is not an outbreak at the school and students have reverted to distance learning for the time being.
In Goleta, board members of the Goleta Union School District unanimously voted Wednesday evening for students to return for in-person learning starting January 11.
While classes will resume five days a week, it won’t be fully back to normal. COVID-19 screenings would take place first thing in the morning with staggered start times and dismissal between 9:00 a.m. and 2:35 p.m.
Additional precautions to minimize interactions would include class sizes of 19 students or less, school bus capacity limited to one-third, and pop up tents in outdoor spaces.
Virtual learning will no longer take place unless students had previously enrolled in the year-round remote program.
The district oversees approximately 3,500 students in nine schools.
GUSD is opening 5 days per week starting January 11…they finally listened!!!! Here’s the Noozhawk article:
https://www.noozhawk.com/article/goleta_union_school_district_to_send_all_students_back_to_school_jan._11
DUKE – what wonderful news!!!
It truly is!
And hey, what a great idea they just came up with last night: Staggered start times and incorporating some outdoor structures! If only someone had suggested that months ago…
And by the holidays Covid will fire up again as predicted that will happen this winter – the cases will go up, and the school will shut down before then. Bet you a beer.
Plan b is we shut down again…. as it should be. We follow the science and logic… and if that means we have to shut for 2 weeks or 2 months… we do! But this limbo of being able to open and public health saying we should open but not opening is insane! This thing is here to stay. Wear a mask and distance when/where possible. But life goes on. So if we have to close in February for a week and all Of may… ok… that’s life! But we follow the experts… not the teachers union …
Dukemunson, did you really mean to say “but life goes on” when a record number of US residents are dying of this pandemic? Seems a bit insensitive to me.