COVID-19 Policy Update #282
COVID-19 Policy Update
WEDNESDAY 6/23
TOP THREE
CDC Says Teens, Young Adults Should Continue to Get the Vaccine; FDA Adds a Warning:
CDC says 323 cases of heart inflammation have been verified in people who received the Pfizer or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine. Cases emerged mostly after the second dose. Of the 323 cases, 295 were discharged from the hospital, nine remained hospitalized as of last week and 14 were not hospitalized. Presentation and data here.
The CDC says the findings do not change the basic recommendation that all people 12 and older should receive either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine.
FDA will include a warning statement about the risks and characteristics of this rare condition
"The facts are clear: this is an extremely rare side effect, and only an exceedingly small number of people will experience it after vaccination," wrote 13 leading health associations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics."
One Million Students: 1.3 million students disappeared from public school rolls during the 2020-2021 school year according to a new report from Education Week that analyzed available state-collected data about schooling during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Represents a 3% drop in enrollment across the board β and it could be larger.
The most severe enrollment losses occurred in Maine, Mississippi, New Hampshire, and Vermont, all of which lost more than 4.3 percent of its students."
βIn Maine, the number of students who were home-schooled alone or in learning pods, increased by 32 percent during the pandemic.β
State by state data is available on the site.
Delta:
Share of Delta variant COVID-19 cases doubles in Germany in a week
From the New Yorker
"Four-fifths of British adults have received at least one shot of a covid-19 vaccine, and more than half are fully vaccinatedβbut the variant has spread widely enough among those who remain vulnerable to fuel a quadrupling of cases and a doubling of hospitalizations in the past month."
"It hasnβt yet been conclusively shown that Delta is more lethal, but early evidence from the U.K. suggests that, compared to Alpha, it doubles the risk of a personβs being hospitalized."
One of the most disturbing aspects of Indiaβs surge was that many children fell ill. And yet there is currently no data to suggest that Delta causes severe illness in a greater proportion of kids; instead, it seems likely that the sheer transmissibility of the variant simply resulted in a higher absolute number of infected children."
"But its arrival is still incredibly consequential. Delta drives an even wider wedge between vaccinated and unvaccinated people. They have already been living in separate worlds, facing vastly different risks of illness and death; now, their risk levels will diverge further. People whoβve been fully vaccinated can, by and large, feel confident in the immunity that theyβve received. But those who remain susceptible should understand that, for them, this is probably the most dangerous moment of the pandemic."
"In a sense, Delta is the first post-vaccination variant. Pockets of the human raceβperhaps five hundred million people out of 7.6 billionβare protected against it, despite its transmissibility; for them, the pandemicβs newest chapter is something of an epilogue, since the main story has, in effect, already concluded. But, for those who remain unvaccinated, by choice or by chance, Delta represents the latest installment in an ongoing series of horrors."
FEDERAL
ED: Here's your chance to become a peer reviewer for grants administered through the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE), Office of Postsecondary Education (OPE), and Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS)
COVID-19 RESEARCH
Vaccine Approval for Children: Dr. Bechara Choucair, the White House vaccinations coordinator, told KXAN that the necessary federal entities wonβt approve the use of vaccines in younger children until βpossibly by the end of the year or early 2022.β
Incidence of MIS-C with COVID-19 Higher Among Racial and Ethnic Minority Groups: Of 248 people with MIS-C included in the study, 96 (38.7%) were Hispanic or Latino, 75 (30.2%) were Black and the median age was 8 years. Incidence of MIS-C per 1 million person-months was about 9-fold higher among Black patients.
Indiana University Students Sue Over Covid-19 Vaccine Requirement: Via the Chronicle of Higher Education
"In the complaint, the students say they feel theyβre being coerced into vaccination under βthe threat of virtual expulsion from school.β
STATE
California:
The Los Angeles Board of Education approved a record $20 billion budget for the upcoming academic year β a massive influx of funding made possible by two unprecedented occurrences: pandemic relief money and record state tax revenues.
Officials laid out a strategy to hire 930 psychologists and psychiatric social workers, an increase of more than 80%; 2,190 teachers, an increase of 8%; and 770 custodial workers, a 25% increase.
Virtual academy to open to Colusa County students
A survey by AltaMed Health Services and Great Public Schools Now found that the educational experiences and psychological wellbeing of residents in the southeast Los Angeles region of L.A. County were impacted at higher rates due to pre-existing βsocial determinants of health that keep them marginalized.β
Grades worsened for 33.8% of children whose families reported being impacted by Covid-19;
54.6% of respondents said they were βconcerned or very concerned about their children having enough to eatβ;
86.6% of respondents said that their families experiences Covid-related impacts such as change in income, death, hospitalization, and job loss.
Wisconsin: WI DHS announces free COVID-19 testing for schools this fall, based partially on Madison schoolβs success.
ECONOMIC RECOVERY
State Equitable Recovery Coalition: Launched by NGA to drive equitable economic recovery and growth championed by Governors of states and territories.
The coalition will complement existing networks that NGA and other organizations are working with to take advantage of shared expertise to help drive a sustainable, equitable recovery and growth from the economic disruptions of the COVID-19 pandemic, while leveraging the opportunity to address issues related to workforce, education, public services, and racial and economic justice.
In addition to NGA and ESG, 16 organizations have joined the coalition: the Association of Community College Trustees, Advance CTE, the American Public Human Services Association, Ascend at the Aspen Institute, the Center for Law and Social Policy, the Coalition on Adult Basic Education, Goodwill Industries International, the Institute for Womenβs Policy Research, JFF, the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, the National Association of Workforce Boards, National Skills Coalition, the National Urban League, New America, the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association and UnidosUS.
Apple Partners with Virginia Union University to Launch 'Smart Campus': Press release.
People Don't Want to Go Back to the Same: Why some think labor crunch isn't just about pay
The Small Business Boom: The number of entrepreneurs starting a business easily hit a record high in 2020, according to a new analysis by University of Maryland economist John Haltiwanger.
"By far the largest single sector of new business formation is "nonstore retailers," who account for one of every three new businesses formed over the pandemic. They were helped at every step of the process by e-commerce platforms such as Shopify and Stripe (which wasn't even founded until 2009).
More from Axios
RESOURCES
Grants to Close Teacher Diversity Gaps: With lead funding from The Walton Family Foundation, NewSchools is offering up to $2.5 million in grants to support efforts focused on recruiting, supporting, and retaining educators of color.
Grantees will receive one-year grants ranging from $150,000 to $250,000 as well as ongoing management assistance and communities of practice to bring their ideas to life.
Smart Ways to Cover the Coming βYear of Ed Financeβ: Via Marguerite Roza
Remember itβs districts that decide how to spend the money.
Make clear that limits on spending are generally self-imposed or a function of labor agreements.
Break down the mega-sums to put dollars in per-student terms (the national average is about $2,400 per student).
Tell readers how spending decisions are being made (and whether they match stakeholder preferences).
Give readers the specifics on exactly what districts are buying (and whether itβs sustainable).
Ask districts what the money will actually do for students.
Invest in Quality Curricula Now for Long Term Returns: Via EdReports: As educators determine budget choices, new stimulus funds offer a powerful opportunity to make a long-term investment in students.
Reimagining Post-Pandemic Classrooms for Todayβs Learners: Interesting piece on school and classroom design.
Where Do We Go Next? Survey from America's Promise Alliance.
58% of teenagers reported learning entirely or mostly online in the 2020-21 school year, and 22% said that they had learned about half online and half in person. 19% said they had learned mostly through in-person instruction.
Almost half of respondents who attended in-person school said their in-person school days lasted more than 6 hours. In contrast, only 17% of students attending remote school said their days lasted that long. Remote school days were most often in the range of 3-6 hours per day.
Almost 3 in 4 surveyed high schoolers (72%) report a poor or decreased sense of mental health in the past 30 days,
Singing In An F-18: This fella covers some of your favorite songs while flying in an F-18. Some funny ones - Smash Mouth; Imagine Dragons; Nickelback; Bon Jovi; Aladdin; Eminem; Highway to the Danger Zone;