Elementary schools allowed to apply for in-person teaching

The Riverside County public health officer today announced that elementary schools in the county may now apply for a waiver to reopen for in-person teaching. Waivers can only be approved for transitional kindergarten through grade 6, following state guidelines.

Schools have been closed for in-person teaching throughout the state since March because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The biggest predictor of school spread is community spread, and although we’re still finding new cases of COVID-19, our case rate has dropped enough where we can consider elementary school waivers,” said Dr. Cameron Kaiser, Riverside County public health officer. “However, the waiver process won’t be a rubber stamp, and elementary schools will be required to publicly demonstrate they have the pieces in place to operate safely or they won’t be approved. We want exposures to be rare and, should an exposure occur, for the school to show they can handle it without putting others at risk.”

The complete news release can be found here.

Riverside County remains on the state's watch list for counties exceeding an 8 percent positivity rate for COVID-19. However, state guidelines allow school districts to apply for a waiver in counties where local officials permit it.

Menifee 24/7 will be seeking reaction from local elementary school officials and will post updates as they become available.