By: Mike Mustiglione
Will the Department of Education (DOE) really excuse coronavirus-related absences as they say they will?
Some parents aren’t buying it.
An announcement by DOE officials earlier today with assurances that absences due to the coronavirus will not have any effect on competitive school applications is being looked at suspiciously by school kids’ parents.
“In our schools, it’s health and safety first,” the DOE posted. “#Coronavirus-related absences will not impact current applications to middle or high schools.”
School attendance is, of course, one of the criteria when schools select from among student applications.
“How will they determine which absences are corona-related?” Community Education Council 2 member Eric Goldberg told The New York Post in an interview. “This also implicitly states that if you keep a child home with seasonal flu or cold, their admissions will be impacted. I suggest DOE think this through a bit more.” He added, “Doctors, public health officials, even the DOE itself says to keep your sick kid home, but DOE is so fixated on assessing and sorting children, it can’t clear up the policy.”
A related problem, of course, is school closings. “Widespread transmission of COVID-19 would translate into large numbers of people needing medical care at the same time. Schools, childcare centers, workplaces, and other places for mass gatherings may experience more absenteeism,” said the CDC in statement.
“Health officials are currently taking steps to prevent the introduction and spread of COVID-19 (‘Coronavirus’) into communities across the United States. Schools can play an important role in this effort,” reads a Department of Education webpage statement. “Through collaboration and coordination with State and local health departments, State and local educational agencies, other education officials, and elected officials, schools can disseminate critical information about the disease and its potential transmission to students, families, staff, and community. Schools can prepare to take additional steps to prevent the spread of COVID-19, should State and local health officials identify such a need.”
“Ultimately, Department of Education officials recommend that schools defer to a Centers for Disease Control (CDC) guidance that provides information for both schools that do, and do not, have identified cases of coronavirus within their communities,” reported cnbc.com. “For schools that have identified cases of coronavirus, the CDC says the first step is to “determine if, when, and for how long childcare programs or schools may need to be dismissed,” indicating that school closures may be recommended for 14 days or longer.”
In fact, CDC appears to be very concerned with kids missing school due to the outbreak. It said in a statement, “School plans should be designed to minimize disruption to teaching and learning and protect students and staff from social stigma and discrimination. Plans can build on everyday practices (e.g., encouraging hand hygiene, monitoring absenteeism, communicating routinely) that include strategies for before, during and after a possible outbreak.”
