Educators and health officials continue working on the “new normal” for Indiana’s schools. State Health Commissioner Dr. Kris Box says they’re having to think outside the box to keep students, teachers, and staff safe.
“We talked about things like putting up plexiglass barriers for the secretaries that are meeting the public and decreasing the number of individuals that were in the schools and moving classrooms into larger areas or even outside, using more video conferencing, especially for teachers that may be at a higher risk,” Box said during Wednesday’s COVID-19 briefing.
Box said that the biggest challenge is convincing schools and parents of the need to wear masks. “I think that there’s a period of time during the day when they’re sitting quietly at their desk working and if everybody’s desk is faced forward, that individual students could certainly take their mask off,” Box said. “But there is a real need for masks to be worn when they’re doing passing periods, going out to the bus to get on the bus to go home, when they’re maybe going to the cafeteria to pick up their lunch and bring it back to their room.”
Box noted that without a vaccine, mask wearing, social distancing, and regular hand washing are the best protections against the coronavirus. She also stressed the need for children, faculty, and staff to stay home if they’re sick. Efforts are underway to make sure schools get full funding for students who have to attend school remotely due to COVID-19.
Dr. Box and State Superintendent of Public Instruction Dr. Jennifer McCormick discussed the reentry guidelines Tuesday during the Indiana Department of Education’s weekly webinar for school leaders.
