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Monongalia on red and eight counties on orange, signaling remote learning to start W.Va. school year

Monongalia on red.

Kanawha, Putnam, Fayette, Monroe, Mercer, Logan, Mingo and Wayne on orange.

Those were the results of a 9 p.m. debut of a map designating how the school year would start in West Virginia.

Designations of orange or red meant counties would have to start the delayed school year with distance learning. Yellow or green meant students could return to classrooms while social distancing.

This marked the first time the color-coded map was used to determine whether schools could open to in-person instruction. It was used previously to determine whether prep sports teams could practice or play.

Gov. Jim Justice

Gov. Jim Justice on Friday noted the reality that the map reflecting the spread of coronavirus in communities would not allow some counties to open classrooms. Instead, some would begin the delayed year with remote learning.

“We’re about to go back to school,” Justice said during a Friday briefing. “Unfortunately, we’re going to have some we just can’t turn loose right now.”

The map is based on daily confirmed covid cases, adjusted for 100,000 population. For counties with fewer than 16,000 residents, the calculation is a 14-day rolling average. Higher population counties are based on a 7-day rolling average.

Removed from the equation were residents of nursing homes and inmates in jails, with state leaders saying their contribution to community spread is minimal.

Green is 3 or fewer cases per 100,000. Yellow is 3.1 to 9.9 cases

Orange is 10 to 24.9 cases. Red is 25 or more.

A group of health experts was reviewing the data today to make sure it passed the eyeball test. For example, they were judging whether there were enough tests in small population counties to be meaningful.

The COVID-19 Data Review Panel includes coronavirus response coordinator Clay Marsh, DHHR Secretary Bill Crouch; State Health Officer Ayne Amjad; Dr. Jeff Coben, dean of the School of Public Health at WVU; and Amy Atkins, director of the Office of Epidemiology and Prevention Services at DHHR’s Bureau for Public Health.

Monroe County, which had been on red all week, was moved to orange by the panel.

According to a statement from the Department of Health and Human Resources: “Although Monroe County has been a red county for over a week, both the daily number of cases and the average 7-day incidence have declined sufficiently to meet the criteria for orange.  The panel was able to draw valid conclusions from that trend that the level of disease in Monroe County is improving.”

Monongalia County went to red on Friday, and its football games were canceled. Now local school system leaders were already assuming the county would remain that way for Week 1 of school.

Monongalia Superintendent Eddie Campbell was planning a “welcome back” school messenger call to all staff and students around noon Sunday. Principals would follow up with school-specific messages and calls to students’ parents Sunday afternoon and Monday.

Similarly, Kanawha County – which was orange heading into the weekend – expressed little hope of beginning the year with students in school buildings.

Kanawha was working toward distributing electronic devices for students to use from home.

“Next week, if we’re orange, the first two days next week devices will be going out; teachers are going to be understanding because they know kids are getting devices,” Kanawha Superintendent Tom Williams told board members at a special meeting last week.

“So the schools will be working with kids and parents next week as we give devices out, assuming we’re not just regular.”

West Virginia’s teachers’ unions last week questioned whether classrooms had enough personal protective equipment such as masks, hand sanitizer, wipes and even plexiglass barriers.

Justice on Friday assured West Virginians that there is enough equipment and also announced another $50 million of federal relief money would be set aside to replenish supplies.

“That should enable us to put aside any concerns and move forward,” the governor said.

Dale Lee

West Virginia Education Association President Dale Lee suggested this is just the beginning, though.

“I think Tuesday a lot of counties will start, and I think you’ll see numbers continue to grow in certain areas and you’ll have to make decisions on what the best possible scenarios are for your educators and students, and then you’re going to have to pivot quickly,” Lee said on MetroNews’ “Talkline.”





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