COVID-19 Policy Update #128
COVID-19 Policy Update
THURSDAY 10/15
TOP THREE
Vaccines and Children: Children may be the last group to get the vaccine for COVID-19 when they become available, according to vaccine guidelines updated by the CDC.
Phase 4:
President Trump said on Fox Business he would increase his COVID-19 package offer above $1.8 trillion.
Secretary Mnuchin told CNBC that the White House won’t let differences over funding targets for COVID-19 testing interrupt stimulus talks with top Democrats
Senate Majority McConnell officially broke with the White House on stimulus negotiations, saying that Republican Senators won’t support a stimulus that the White House and Democrats are negotiating.
Student Mobility: Via The 74, which includes results from a survey of districts in the Large Countywide and Suburban District Consortium:
John Adams Academy, a charter school with three campuses outside of Sacramento, CA has 3,300 students, up from 2,400 last school year.
Gwinnett County Public Schools reported 177,400 enrollments - 3,600 less than expected
Montgomery County Public Schools 162,300 enrollments - 4,000 less than expected.
COVID-19 RESEARCH
IHME: Weekly update.
Vaccine Skepticism: Facing public skepticism about rushed COVID-19 vaccines, health officials are planning an extra layer of safety scrutiny for the first people vaccinated. Officials plan to text early vaccine recipients to check how they’re feeling, daily for the first week and then weekly out to six weeks.
Rapid Testing: Scientists at the University of Oxford have developed a rapid COVID-19 test able to identify the coronavirus in less than five minutes.
Smart Thermometers as Early Warning Indicators: Kinsa's 1.5 million connected thermometers provide real-time data about fevers around the U.S., which can be compared to historical rates of seasonal illnesses like the flu to indicate "when something unusual is happening,." Their data from the start of the pandemic shows spikes of fevers peaking 2-3 weeks before the first recorded COVID-19 deaths in New York City — a clear early warning the outbreak was blooming.
STATE
Arizona: The Governor announced using $500,000 of the Governor’s Emergency Education Relief (GEER) Fund to be distributed by A for Arizona through its Expansion and Innovation Fund. The dollars will support the creation of effective small learning models and community partnerships that target students and families in need.
California: Up to 1 million students may still lack connectivity during distance learning. Nearly 42% of California families said that unreliable internet access was a challenge for them during distance learning, and 29% said lack of devices were hindering their learning experience, according to a recent poll by EdSource and FM3 Research.
Illinois: Students have started an online petition against Chicago Public Schools, asking the district to reduce e-learning hours to just four. The petition had more than 38,000 signatures.
Kansas: "Parents need schools open, while teachers need safety. Kansas can do both, education commissioner says."
North Carolina: New Elon University poll showing 77% of residents said it was a good decision to offer only online classes instead of in-person classes at the start of the school year. 71% of Republicans, 89% of Democrats and 70% from neither party supported this approach. 48% said most schools shouldn’t return to full-time in-person instruction for most students until there’s a vaccine and/or treatment for COVID-19 or until the start of next school year. That compared to 42% who said students should return either as soon as possible.
Pennsylvania: OpEd: "There’s no way to ‘safely reopen’ Philadelphia’s schools"
South Dakota: The Yankton School Board has approved a new rapid testing program for students who are showing symptoms.
Texas:
Eight Texas school systems will get rapid coronavirus tests with a new pilot program.
Navasota ISD: Over the first five weeks of school, 2% of on-campus learners were failing four or more on-campus classes but 25% of at-home remote learners that were failing four or more classes.
Washington: Districts report 5-20% of students as not engaged.
INTERNATIONAL
EU: Europe is experiencing another surge of cases. France reported a record 30,621 cases in 24 hours leading Macron to institute a nightly curfew (You'll need to drink your Cos d'Estournel St. Estephe from home). Infections are surging again in the Lombardy region of northern Italy where the pandemic first took hold in Europe. Hans Kluge, the WHO’s director for Europe, said today that if the current trajectory holds, death rates will be four or five times higher in January than they were in April.
ECONOMIC RECOVERY
BRT: The Business Roundtable commits to break down barriers to economic opportunity including:
Advocating for policies that support increasing investments in high-quality pre-Kindergarten and expanded pre-Kindergarten for low-income families.
Urging governors to publish disaggregated performance data and funding levels for each school and subgroup as required under ESSA
Launching a multi-year, targeted effort to commit to shifts in their talent management practices that lead to greater, more equitable economic mobility for their people and communities, with a specific focus on disproportionately underrepresented populations. More than over 70 companies have signed on to be part of the initiative.
Calling for modernization and reform of the nation’s workforce development system.
HBCUs & Google: Google to provide digital skills training at HBCUs as part of $15 million pledge
30 Cities Tackle Budgets and Equity: Bloomberg Philanthropies announced 30 cities that will participate in the What Works Cities City Budgeting for Equity and Recovery program, a new effort that will help cities confront budget crises while strengthening their commitment to equity in the wake of COVID-19.
Gig Economy: Mastercard teams with Stride to bring portable benefits to gig-economy workers
Strada Education and Work Survey: Survey: The biggest challenge for students is their emotional well-being: 3 in 4 students report feeling stress or anxiety this fall and more than 40 percent report stress, anxiety, and loneliness as their biggest challenge—well ahead of cost, academic rigor, and access to the internet and a computer. Nearly two million students feel they will have to push back their graduation. Another 15% are unsure whether they will need to delay, bringing the total ratio of students who may delay graduation to more than 1 in 4.
LEARNING PODS
The Teachers Union’s Tiny New Enemy: WSJ piece on microschools:
"The NEA opposition report cites an expert who thinks microschools can “address some of the structural limitations of homeschooling,” such as parents’ work obligations, and—this is Prenda’s innovation—take advantage of school-choice programs to “alleviate some equity issues” posed by the cost of hiring your own teachers. The combination could make home education feasible for millions more families."
"In New York’s Westchester County, a zoning board is trying to deem a SchoolHouse microschool a day-care center, which is unlawful in its residential zone. Similar rules are popping up all over. The Public Health Department in Austin, Texas, seems to suggest home microschools with four or more children must become “registered child-care homes” that meet “minimum standards” laid out in a 244-page document. "
Tutors: Fresno Unified announces tutors to help students struggling with online learning
Pod Delivery: This start-up unveiled its new driverless Pod delivery trucks. Has nothing to do with education or COVID but I've been interested in automation and its implications for the workforce.
Microschools, Pandemic Pods, and the Future of Education in America: New piece from Jason Bedrick and Matthew Ladner.
RESOURCES
Millennial Mental Health: Nearly a third of millennials have a behavioral health condition, and rates are rising by double digits. Millennial health continues to decline, driven by notable increases in behavioral health conditions, including a 12% increase in major depression, 7% increase in alcohol use disorder and a 5% increase in tobacco use disorder and substance use disorder. There's a 64% difference in ADHD diagnosis rates between Hispanic and white individuals, for instance, and a 31% difference in depression diagnosis rates between Black and white millennials.
Resting Education: Via WEF: COVID-19 is an opportunity to reset education. Here's 4 ways how
Overdose Deaths: Overdose deaths increased by about 10% in the first three months of 2020 according to the CDC.
West Wing: New special. The first time in 17 years that the original cast will come together for a theatrical stage presentation of the 'Hartsfield’s Landing' episode from the show’s third season. Maybe Vinick 2020?