Following several days of COVID-19 data trending in a positive direction, San Diego County has been taken off of California’s COVID-19 watch list.

The state announced that as of Tuesday, August 18th San Diego County has been removed from its watch list for successfully reporting for three consecutive days an average rate of less than 100 new cases per 100,000 residents (NBC San Diego).

This means that K-12 schools will be able to reopen for in-person education as soon as Sept. 1 if San Diego County can remain off the state’s watch list for another 14 days.

Aside from a child’s home, no other setting has more influence on a child’s health and wellness than their school, according to the CDC.  The in-person school environment does the following:

• provides educational instruction;
• supports the development of social and emotional skills;
• creates a safe environment for learning;
• addresses the unique concerns of special needs students;
• creates a more equitable learning environment for students in underserved populations;
• addresses nutritional needs; and
• facilitates physical activity.

Families have organized their lives and schedules around children attending school. It is a substantial burden on many of our families to ask them to stay home with their children for at-home learning. It is time we help the hard-working families in our community transition to a more normal life. 

The SDUHSD can safely open our schools if the board decides to do so. If you support sending our kids back to school in a safe manner that is consistent with state government COVID-19 guidelines, please sign this petition and let the board know where you stand.