COVID-19 Policy Update #105
COVID-19 Policy Update
WEDNESDAY 9/16
TOP THREE
We Lost a Giant On Monday: With the passing of Bill Gates Sr. Reflections from Bill Gates here.
More Concerns About Vaccine Manufacturing Capacity: "It’s not clear whether the drug’s manufacturing and distribution will be adequate enough to quickly end the global pandemic," said Mark Suzman, CEO of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Also, the CDC Director told a Senate panel that he thinks it will take one year before a coronavirus vaccine will be “generally available to the American public”.
COVID Risks for Minority Children: New CDC report: Coronavirus is disproportionately killing minority children in the U.S., especially those with other underlying health conditions. "Disparities in social determinants of health, such as crowded living conditions, food and housing insecurity, wealth and educational gaps, and racial discrimination, likely contribute to racial and ethnic disparities in COVID-19 and MIS-C incidence and outcomes."
FEDERAL
Phase 4:
President Trump tweeted that Republican lawmakers should “go for the much higher numbers” in a pandemic relief package. But Politico reports that Senate Republicans haven't been swayed. Senate Majority Whip Thune said, “If the number gets too high, anything that got passed in the Senate will be passed mostly with Democrat votes and a handful of Republicans so it’s gonna have to stay within a realistic range if we want to maximize, optimize the number of Republican senators that will vote for it."
Reactions to the Bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus proposal):
White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows said that the Administration “is open to the compromise $1.52 trillion stimulus proposal.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi wasn't swayed: “A skinny deal is not a deal,” and called it a "Republican bill.”
Eight Democratic House committee chairs said it “falls short” of what’s needed.
Senator McConnell hasn’t indicated whether he’d back the proposal.
CDC: CDC Director Robert Redfield told a Senate committee that face masks may offer more individual protection against COVID-19 than a potential coronavirus vaccine.
STATE
California: A ransomware attack has taken down the computer system at the Newhall School District, forcing a shutdown of distance learning for some 6,000 elementary school students.
New York:
In a district of almost 10,000 students, nearly 500 Williamsville students and parents were protesting on what was the first morning of all – virtual learning, even for the students who were at school last week
ECONOMIC RECOVERY
The Fed: Officials projected said they have no plans to raise interest rates through 2023 and they were committed to providing more support to an economy that faces an uneven recovery.
Amazon: Amazon couldn’t fulfill its two-day delivery pledge earlier this year when shoppers in COVID-19 lockdown flooded the company with more orders than it could handle. As a result, they're planning 1,000 small delivery hubs in smaller cities and suburbs.
New York City: The Manhattan Institute commissioned the Siena College Research Institute to survey New York City adults earning at least $100,000 a year to understand their views on the future of work and the quality of life in the city and their likelihood of leaving.
44% of high-income New Yorkers say that they have considered relocating outside the city in the past four months, with cost of living cited as the biggest reason.
More than half of high-income New Yorkers are working entirely from home, and nearly two-thirds believe that this will be the new normal for the city.
Of those considering leaving New York City, 30% say that the possibility of working remotely makes it more likely that they will move.
Small Business Closures: As of Aug, 31, 163,735 businesses have indicated on Yelp that they have closed, a 23% increase since mid-July. Permanent closures have reached 97,966, representing 60% of closed businesses that won’t be reopening.
FedEx: Reported average daily ground network volume by 31% through the summer. "The growth we expected to see in three to five years happened in a matter of three to five months," according to Chief Operating Officer Raj Subramaniam.
Freelance Economy: Is now worth $1.2 trillion, a 22% increase from 2019, according to a new report from Upwork. 58% of non-freelancers new to remote work are considering freelancing in the future. Two fast-growing freelancer cohorts are parents who are juggling child care and work during the pandemic and Gen Zers, many of whom are learning remotely.
Job Seekers: More than half of American job seekers are looking for work as a result of COVID-19, and 61% are pursuing opportunities in a different industry, according to a recent survey by Amazon and Morning Consult. 48% would change jobs if an employer offered company-funded upskilling training.
LEARNING PODS
Addressing Equity in NC: NAACP has partnered with the Project for Equitable Access in Remote Learning, an initiative designed "to help mitigate the education equity gap that has intensified as a result of COVID-19."
Using Pods as Part of School: Park Street Academy (PSA) utilizes a pod-style learning approach.
Pod Concerns in Canada: "What is particularly troubling about these pandemic pods is what it means for public education more broadly. It’s a shift away from the public to the private,” Agata Soroko, a professor in the faculty of education at the University of Ottawa."
Housing Authority Pods: Frederick housing authority offers online learning hubs.
'A Win-Win': Learning pods offer an alternative to virtual learning.
RESOURCES
How Governors Are Using their CARES Act Funding: Analysis from the Hunt Institute and Future Ed.
The Crushing Reality of Zoom School: Opinion piece from a Esquire writer's experience.
Teens Experience With Online Learning: A new poll released by Common Sense/SurveyMonkey showed that:
59% of teens said that online learning is worse than in-person schooling—with almost one-fifth (19%) characterizing it as "much worse."
Only 45% of Black teens consider online learning to be worse than in-person schooling, compared to 60% of White teens, 64% of Hispanic teens, and 62% of Asian teens or teens of other races/ethnicities.
More than six in 10 teens (61%) say they are worried about falling behind academically because of the pandemic, with Hispanic and Asian teens or teens of other races/ethnicities particularly likely to say they are worried about falling behind (79% and 67%, respectively) compared to White teens (55%).
Yet Another Online Learning Frustration: Assessment Glitches: Via EdWeek.
23 States + DC Failed to Give Schools Health Guidance: Report from CRPE.
EdTech Investment: Per CB Insights: Edtech investment activity is on track for a strong year. Driven by several $100M+ mega-rounds, funding has surpassed 2019 levels, with over $4.8B raised in 2020 year-to-date (as of August).
Tadpoles Apps Adds Features for COVID: The Teaching Strategies app used to connect more than 430,000 families to their child care providers added new features that facilitate contactless curbside check-in and log children's temperature and symptoms in accordance with CDC guidelines.
Why So Many People Are Disappointed With Their Educations—And How To Start Fixing It: Thoughtful piece from the thoughtful Bruno Mano.
Dave Grohl vs Nandi Bushell Battle : If you haven't been tracking the battle between Dave Grohil and Nandi Bushell, make sure to watch this video (the end is priceless)