‘An exciting day.’ Merced County schools back in session, amid changing COVID rules
Doug Collins had an armful of snacks a parent had dropped off for his child’s class at Rivera Elementary on Wednesday morning.
The Merced City School District Interim Superintendent carried boxes of cookies and pretzels as he escorted students to their classroom for the first time.
Wednesday marked the first day of new school year for approximately 10,800 students in the Merced City School District. It was also the first day back for most districts in the county. Los Banos Unified School District junior high and high school students will return Aug. 13 and elementary school students will return Monday.
Some schools were welcoming back full classes for the first time since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020. And some students who previously opted to stick with distance learning were returning to in-person classes.
Collins says the majority of the kids and staff were happy to return to school.
“With parents there is both excitement and maybe a little bit of anxiousness, but I saw kids with smiles, even through the masks the entire time,” Collins said. “Teachers and staff are really excited to have students back — all of us are. It’s been a long time and so this is an exciting day.”
Merced City School District Board President Birdie Olivarez-Kidwell was also among those escorting kids to classrooms at Rivera Elementary on Wednesday.
“I think it’s elation, a little bit of anxiety, maybe a little bit of trepidation, but mostly from the parents,” she said. “The kids seemed to be thrilled, practically skipping to class.”
Last year when students returned to schools the classrooms were only about half full, with many parents deciding to keep their kids at home to learn via distance learning.
Distance learning isn’t an option at this point. Parents can still opt to have their kids learn via independent study, but almost all students are expected back in the classroom.
Collins says he expects student attendance to be just as strong as any normal year.
Merced Union High School District Superintendent Alan Peterson says only 10 students in his district of about 11,000 students have opted for independent study due to COVID-19.
Peterson says it’s crucial for students to physically be on campus to learn. “It’s incredibly important,” Peterson said. “There’s nothing more important. Students have to be here and you can tell by the number of requests for independent study it’s where they want to be, it’s where the staff wants to be.”
The quad at El Capitan High quickly filled with students as they changed classes Wednesday morning. Almost all students wore face masks as they searched for their next class.
El Capitan Principal Lee Shaw says it was a much different atmosphere than a year ago when they had only 35 to 40 percent of their students on campus.
“Awesome, it’s absolutely amazing,” Shaw said. “People are excited, our staff is excited to have students back and the students, you can see it. Many of our students haven’t been on campus for almost a year and a half.”
COVID precautions
The schools are following COVID-19 safety guidelines from Merced County and the California Department of Public Health.
With growing concerns over the Delta variant, now the nation’s dominant COVID-19 strain, students and staff are required to wear masks indoors, regardless of everyone’s vaccination status
Olivarez-Kidwell says the Merced City School District has also placed an emphasis on improving the ventilation systems in classrooms and will make COVID testing available.
“We are going to continue to follow all the guidance that is given to us,” Collins said. “Sometimes the rules shift on us and have been as you know. We’re going to follow the county public health guidance and California Department of Public Health and we’re going to make sure that we are compliant.”
Administrators say they haven’t experienced much resistance to the mask policies.
“It probably depends on who you ask,” Collins said. “The reality is that our students have been really adaptable, as have our staff and they don’t seem to complain much when they’re here at all about wearing them indoors. I don’t think that will be a major issue for us.”
Vaccination or test
On Wednesday, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced all California school teachers must get vaccinated or submit to regular COVID testing.
The new rules apply to public and private school teachers and are intended to keep students safe, particularly those under 12 who can’t get vaccinated. The rules are also expected to help keep kids from being exposed to the coronavirus and having to stay home from school.
“It’s par for the course,” Peterson said. “We live in the state of California and some of the mandates some people are going to like and part of the mandate some people aren’t going to like. We have to roll with it. We’re a public institution and we will follow what the states says.”
Peterson says that approximately 80% of teachers and staff in the MUHSD are vaccinated.
Approximately 75% of the 633 teachers and staff that filled out a questionnaire for the MCSD says they are vaccinated.
Collins says the new vaccination or test rule isn’t unexpected. “I don’t know that I’m surprised,” he said. “I think, just like all of the other different things that have come our way, we will adapt, we will comply and we’ll get these things done.”
Peterson says giving teachers the option to test instead of mandating they get vaccinated was the way to go.
“That will be an interesting union issue,” Peterson said. “I think everything will be fine right now because there is an option to test. If you’re asking me if we’re going down that road I don’t know. I’d sure as the heck hope the state allows all of our staff to have an option to test. We’re going to respect that right for those that don’t want the vaccine.”
A step forward
After a tough year and a half of trying to educate students during a pandemic, Wednesday was a day to celebrate for educators.
Students were finally back on campus.
There were many lessons learned during the pandemic.
“I think what we’ve found — and this is what I shared with teachers — we can look back and see all of the hurdles we’ve overcome, but if you re-frame that and just talk about all the things we’ve accomplished, it really changes your perspective,” Collins said.
“We learned that we as a district can pivot,” Olivarez-Kidwell added. “We learned that our teachers are so adaptable, but more than that our kids, our students, they can flex on a dime. They’re great.”
The school districts say they will be ready to adapt if they need to again. If the COVID pandemic worsens again due to the variant strands, they may have to revert back to other options.
“You get news on a Sunday, you have to react to it on a Monday for 11,000 kids, and staff taking that message that happens on a dime, turning it into reality the next day or two, Peterson said. “I think everyone has learned that they can change and adapt much quicker than a year and a half ago.”
For now, teachers and staff are happy to see students back in school.
“There so much more appreciation for everyone, a lot of things we take for granted,” Shaw said. “What I see today from students is their appreciation that they get to be here.”
