Fall Plans Shaping Up In Chatham For Masking, In-Person School

CHATHAM, NJ— School District of the Chathams Superintendent Dr. Michael LaSusa said preparing for the 2021-2022 school year will differ greatly than it had at the beginning of the past school year.

LaSusa said at the most recent Board of Education meeting that guidance from the State Department of Education has been whittled down for this year “from 104 pages to about 15 pages.”

With it though, LaSusa said, “There’s a clear and overriding message that all schools must open every day ‘as normal.’”

That means for students and staff, all must be there in person and schools must stay open for 180 days, except for very limited circumstances, such as if a student must quarantine because of COVID exposure.

School districts, LaSusa said, are required to provided remote access to kids diagnosed with COVID; and have the technology to do so. That remote option will also kick in for children who are deemed close contacts of another student who tested COVID-positive.

Other cases will be assessed on a case-by-case basis, LaSusa said, such as broken bones from sports and non-COVID sicknesses, to determine if remote learning is warranted.

The form of “normal” LaSusa also told the Board and audience at the July 12 meeting, is anticipated to have students stay three feet apart while in school, with other mitigation strategies in place when that isn’t possible.

However, he clarified, “Although schools will be required to implement virus mitigation strategies, those strategies can’t interfere with or prevent a school district from operating.”

The district’s “length of day and in-person frequency of contact” are expected to return to what it was in pre-pandemic times, LaSusa said.

LaSusa said principals within the district are now working on plans for lunchroom schedules, which he expects should be ready in about a week.

Unvaccinated Students And Staff May Need To Stay Masked

On the topic of masking, LaSusa said he’s still waiting on full guidance from New Jersey’s Department of Health and Department of Education, which in turn had been waiting on guidance from the CDC. At the end of June, Gov. Phil Murphy said he expected fall masking mandates would be left up to each school district. However, LaSusa said the CDC’s new recommendations for the 2021-2022 school year is that all unvaccinated students and staff should be masked up in schools.

LaSusa’s not sure yet though if the state’s Department of Health and Department of Education will follow CDC guidelines on masking. Previously, he said both departments mirrored the CDC recommendations in some instances and in other cases did not. He said in the past, the Department of Health and Education and sometimes took a few weeks to make a final decision on handling CDC mandates.

The school district, LaSusa said, will likely need to have all of its plans to the Department of Education around Aug. 10, the deadline last year.

Some Parents Speak Out About Unmasking Kids

I want to be assured here tonight that children and teens will not be segregated, discriminated against, or bullied, for exercising their medical freedom,” said Kyle Roberts, one mother who had already requested a mask-optional school year at the June 21 board meeting.

She asked what the board on Monday what it would base its decision on for mask options.

Another mother, Lauren Peterson, questioned why her child would need to wear one in school when it wasn't required at a recent visit to the doctor's office.

Amy High expressed her concerns about the carbon dioxide levels and children not having proper oxygen while mask-wearing, as her son had experienced when his oxygen levels were tested at a doctor's office recently.

High said the nurse told her that kids are only getting 95 percent oxygen with the masks on and children have been wearing them for 16 months straight in school.

"All of our children deserve 100 percent oxygen in the air they breathe, regardless of their age, their vaccination status, their religious beliefs or their medical disabilities," High said.

Kristen Cullen said it should be the choice of parents, not the State of New Jersey, to mask or unmask their own children, calling it both a Pandora's box and discriminatory.

Board of Education President Jill Critchley Weber said as a whole, the board would like the district to have an unmasked experience for the fall, but could risk funding and accreditation if there's an Executive Order in place again.

LaSusa said he expects to have more answers about mask options by August 15.

What To Expect For Quarantining, Social Distancing

Critchley Weber had questions about district control, asking if there was more guidance on social distancing and duration of quarantine for students, with concerns what the district had control over.

One of her main concerns was that since there will be full attendance, if more students will be quarantined if there’s a positive COVID case, with not only a smaller radius for social distancing, but more students back in school.

Critchley Weber said Chatham as a district is fortunate, with a high vaccination rate overall.

LaSusa answered her, saying any person within six feet for more than 10 minutes of the person who tested positive, would be quarantined. The level of virus transmission would also count, such as if Chatham were in the green or yellow transmission zones, with duration of quarantine dropping about seven days, as long as there was a negative COVID test between five and seven days.

Vaccinated people, however, wouldn’t be required to quarantine, LaSusa said.

Critchley Weber said she was worried about students not able to get vaccinated and with the number of students back, the greater number of kids who may need to be out quarantining.

Activities In The Fall

Board Member Chris Delsandro asked how physical education classes will be this fall.

“Phys Ed will probably look similar to what it did this year but closer to normal overall,” LaSusa said.

When community transmission is high, LaSusa said there would be a more conservative approach, with it more normal when transmission rates are low. With school gyms being generous spaces, LaSusa said the district has more flexibility; and students will get outdoors as much as possible for physical education classes, where masks aren’t required.

Member Sal Arnuk said he hopes LaSusa will keep the after-school interaction up among students, who he described were “starved for it” in the midst of COVID. He complimented LaSusa for having spearheaded some after-school program.

“I would hope when we craft these policies for the fall, we also look to keep that good thing going, regardless of COVID,” said Arnuk.

Arnuk said it was important for the mental health of the students, who were “coming out of a very bad period.”

“Any opportunities to keep kids socializing and engaged is always a good thing,” Critchley Weber agreed.

RELATED: Chatham School District Plans To Discuss Fall Mask Mandates Soon

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