With the end of summer arriving and the start of school getting closer and closer, there have been many questions throughout the community about what school will look like this year. Will students wear masks, will social distancing be enforced, will the COVID vaccination be required, will students have to quarantine? All of these questions were answered at Olympia’s recent board meeting. 

The board created their 2021-2022 Learning Plan in their most recent meeting, finalizing their plans for this upcoming school year. Last summer, their COVID Learning Plan was put together with the input of teachers, administrators, and board members. Throughout the 2020-2021 school year, Olympia was able to maintain in-person instruction with minimal COVID transmission in their buildings. The board credited this success to their planning, the parents and the community's support and assistance. In this year’s Learning Plan the board says that they, “Realize that COVID is not going away but we know so much more about the virus than we did in August 2020. We are determined to provide a safe environment for our staff and students and an environment in which they can learn comfortably.” 

As far as masks are concerned, the Olympia School District’s 2021-2022 Learning Plan says that they will be optional for students in Olympia buildings. The Learning Plan does state that the CDC recommends that unvaccinated students wear masks, but the Olympia School District is leaving that decision up to the students and their parents. The Learning Plan also says, “Should school and community transmission rates increase to high or substantial levels, the mask recommendation may be modified.” 

When it comes to social distancing, the Olympia School District’s 2021-2022 Learning Plan says that they will continue to keep students at least three feet apart as much as possible. Based on the CDC recommendation, they say that schools should try to keep students distanced three feet apart as much as they can. Olympia has been able to do that successfully in their classrooms over the last year and they will, “work to maintain that as much as possible.” 

According to Olympia’s Learning Plan for this school year, Olympia will work with their health clerks and nurses and the Count Health Departments to notify students, teachers or faculty who were in close contact of a positive case of COVID. A “close contact” is still considered someone that was within three feet for over 15 minutes of a positive case. Olympia will not have students who are vaccinated or students who have tested positive for COVID within the last 90 calendar days quarantine, even if they are deemed a close contact. This guideline is based on CDC / IDPH guidance. 

Although masks are optional for students in Olympia buildings, students will be required to wear masks on the bus, based on CDC / IDPH guidelines. Regardless of vaccination status, Olympia’s bus riding students will have to wear masks. Making sure their kids wear a mask on their bus is one of the few things that Olympia is asking its students’ parents to do. Other things include making sure their child is fever-free, not exhibiting symptoms of COVID and not waiting on the results from a COVID test. Olympia is encouraging it’s parents to be “overly cautious when considering whether or not to send a child to school.”
This upcoming school year will also include three different “Mitigation Levels”. Mitigation Level 1 is when Olympia’s metrics indicate low or minimal transmission and county rates are moderate or lower. This is where masks are recommended for non-vaccinated students, but are optional in school buildings, masks are required on buses and nurses’ offices, parents self-screen students prior to coming to school, a minimum of three feet will be between students when possible, and quarantine for close contacts unless the student or staff is vaccinated or had COVID within the last three months. 

Mitigation Level 2 would be when Olympia’s metrics indicate moderate transmission and county rates are moderate or lower. This Mitigation Level 2 has almost all of the same guidelines as Mitigation Level 1, except for a couple. These include a limit on student gatherings to essential gatherings only and there would be adjusted protocols for areas of concern such as classrooms, teams, or grade levels. 

In Mitigation Level 3, Olympia’s metrics indicate substantial transmission. This will cause masks to be required for students and staff for a period of time, masks required on buses and nurse’s offices, parents self-screen students, three feet will be required between students in all circumstances, adjusted protocols for areas of concern, and all non-essential group gathering within the day would be eliminated. Olympia’s Learning Plan says that the Olympia Metrics Committee will meet prior to the school year to identify specific local benchmarks that would constitute low, moderate, and substantial or high transmission rates. 

Although school this year will continue to be abnormal, there is progress that has been made. With masks starting out being optional, there seems to be a little bit of normal coming back into Olympia schools. The Olympia school district did a great job of maintaining in-person schooling during the 2020-2021 school year, and they have their students' best interest in mind for this upcoming year as well.