Dear Friends and Families of the Capistrano Unified School District, recently there has been a noticable rise in absences related to Covid-19.

Today I noticed my classroom nearly half empty with many of my friends being absent due to Covid-like symptoms. My friend even noted that there were only 6 students in their classroom and the rest were absent due to being sick. In addition to this, one of my teachers continues to teach their class even though this teacher's whole entire family has been diagnosed with Covid-19, putting fellow staff and students at risk.

According to Burbio's K-12 school tracker, "5441 schools are starting a period of disruption (not offering in-person learning) of one or more days during the week beginning January 2nd" throughout the United States. So why are we not closing our schools if the amount of positive Covid cases have started to reach those of the winter surge of 2020-2021?

It is within our best interests that we close schools down for the continued safety and health of our staff and students. I understand that families might believe that we will be losing precious lesson time if we go back to an online setting. However, most classes and teachers are already prepared for a switch back to online learning. This temporary lockdown will help reduce the rise in cases and will not hinder the academic progress of students. In addition to this, students have already been falling behind on work due to being absent and having to quarantine, so going back to an online setting can help students get back on track.

I understand that the online learning landscape is not for everyone. However, a provisional 2 week lockdown can greatly help reduce cases in the long run. Furthermore, many faculty and students have not been enforcing proper mask wearing rules in coordinance with Covid-19 guidelines, and this could account for the sudden rise in cases among students and faculty. Therefore, there should be a stricter rulebook set alongside faculty and students to enforce better mask wearing. Alongside all this, a hybrid schedule could also be a good solution for students that do not exceed well in an online landscape, also allowing for sports to continue as well.

Temporarily closing down schools or returning to a hybrid schedule are our best options, not only for the safety of students, staff, and the families of CUSD, but for a stable learning envrionment. Please sign this petition if you agree.