West De Pere School District schedules special board meeting for Saturday night - WBAY

gomotar.blogspot.com

DE PERE, Wis. (WBAY) - School Board members of the West De Pere School District will hold a special meeting Saturday night.

The meeting is scheduled for 8 p.m. in the West De Pere High School auditorium.

The event will also be held virtually on Zoom.

Zoom meeting information can be found below.

The district announced the meeting on Facebook Saturday morning after a message was sent to families and staff members late Friday afternoon regarding an advisory that would be sent by the city’s health department about in-person classes.

As Action 2 News has previously reported, the District had announced earlier this week they would be returning to in-person classes on October 19 after being in all virtual classes since October 5.

According to Dennis Krueger, the Superintendent for the West De Pere School District, district officials have been working with the city’s health department all along, including earlier this week.

Krueger says at that time health officials continued to state they wouldn’t provide recommendations to schools, however, his message to families says the department’s position seems to have changed, citing a message from the City of De Pere.

De Pere’s Health Department issued a release Friday afternoon, saying they advise against in-person learning, citing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s indicators, which say Brown County is in the highest risk level for transmission in schools. Their message states the CDC lists the area as producing more than 1,000 new positive COVID-19 cases within the past 14 days per 100,000 people.

Debora Armbruster, the director of the De Pere Health Department, issued the following statement in Friday’s release:

“The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) warns that there is currently uncontrolled spread of SARS-CoV-2 in much of our country, and we share their concern. What that unfortunately means, quite simply, is that while we all advocate and hope for in-person learning for our children due to numerous recognized mental, social and psychological benefits, the current widespread circulation of this virus will not permit in-person learning to be safely accomplished in many jurisdictions, including ours. De Pere is not an exception. The virus is here in our City and neighboring region, and spreading at unsafe levels. The De Pere Health Department cannot recommend in-person instruction at this time as a result."

James Boyd, the Mayor of De Pere, also issued a statement regarding the health department’s stance:

“I fully support the De Pere Health Department’s unwavering stance that in-person learning should not be conducted currently in our City,” Mayor Boyd said. "To be clear, as a former educator and coach for decades in the City of De Pere, including having been a teacher during the pandemic at the end of last school year, I fully empathize with the ongoing challenges facing staff, instructors, athletes, parents and students during this pandemic. These are difficult times, and I understand each of us longs for a sense of normalcy. However, we need to remain vigilant in stopping the spread of Covid-19. In-person instruction may pose significant, unnecessary risk to our students and staff, their family members or guardians at home, and the local businesses and organizations they are involved in or support. I urge everyone in in the City of De Pere – businesses, schools, community groups and residents alike – to remain proactive in supporting and maintaining safe conditions in our City.”

The City of De Pere has two separate public school districts - the West De Pere School District and the Unified School District of De Pere.

Officials in the Unified School District of De Pere decided to extend all classes to be held virtually until November 6 in a meeting on October 5.

In his message to families and staff, Krueger said schools, ranging from K-12 to universities, have been exempt from any state orders which limit public gatherings.

RELATED: Wisconsin governor announces limit on public gatherings amid COVID-19 outbreak

As Action 2 News previously reported, the latest emergency order issued by the state was halted by a judge earlier this week after the Tavern League of Wisconsin filed a lawsuit looking to block the emergency order. The order limited public gatherings to no more than 25% of a room or building’s total occupancy.

Check back for updates throughout the evening.

Copyright 2020 WBAY. All rights reserved.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

"board" - Google News
October 18, 2020 at 12:02AM
https://ift.tt/3jc3XhE

West De Pere School District schedules special board meeting for Saturday night - WBAY
"board" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2KWL1EQ
https://ift.tt/2YrjQdq

Bagikan Berita Ini