MUSD decision to be made Tuesday; Romoland July 21

By Doug Spoon, Editor

Menifee Union School District has posted a link for viewing of its virtual school board meeting on Tuesday, when trustees will vote on which instructional model(s) will be available to students in the coming school year.

Board members will receive a report from leaders of task forces that have studied the viability of three options – traditional classroom learning, distance learning online, and a hybrid of both models. This meeting will take place one day after two major Southern California school districts – LA Unified School District and San Diego Unified School District – announced that they will offer only distance learning to students because of COVID-19 guidelines.

Perris Union School District – which has jurisdiction over Paloma Valley and Heritage high schools in Menifee – made the same decision last week. The PUHSD board will also hold a meeting on Tuesday in which additional information will be presented regarding plans to accommodate special needs students and English learners.

The link to view the MUSD meeting Tuesday at 4:30 p.m. can be found here. Click on the Live Feed link to view the meeting. There is also a link to the meeting agenda on that webpage, as well as a link to a form to submit public comments to be read during the meeting.

The link to view the PUHSD meeting Tuesday at 5 p.m. can be found here. That webpage includes a link to the meeting agenda as well as a form to submit public comments, which can be submitted after 3 p.m. Tuesday.

Romoland School District continues to display details on all three learning methods on its website and Facebook page, but a final decision has not been made, said Superintendent Trevor Painton today. He said the decision will be made during a special district board meeting July 21 based on “local health conditions.”

Gov. Gavin Newsom said during a press conference today that the state continues to call upon counties to follow local health guidelines. Riverside County has not issued any guidelines specific to schools. However. Newsom did add to the state order once again prohibiting gatherings inside fitness centers, churches, hair salons and malls, adding to his previous order regarding restaurants and bars.

Newsom was asked during the press conference how these orders related to schools, considering that some districts have adopted distance-only instructional models while others are undecided.

“We are calling upon counties to observe local health guidelines,” Newsom said. “Given that, I acknowledge that two of the biggest school districts in the state – LA Unified and San Diego Unified – today announced plans to use distance learning only. I applaud the leadership of those districts, giving the children and their caretakers a chance to make plans.”

Newsom was then asked why, if indoor activities at so many businesses and other locations were once again prohibited, school districts were allowed to decide for themselves. Would the state impose further restrictions that would prohibit on-campus instruction for students?

“We’re monitoring all this in real time,” he replied. “We will be further strengthening guidelines. Our actions should encourage you to believe that we will be leaning further in that direction.”

Editor’s note: Menifee 24/7 will conduct video interviews later this week with PUHSD officials about plans for the distance learning program for high school students. If you would like to submit a question to be posed to the administrators, email it to menifee247schools@gmail.com.