School districts must sign off on covid-19 safety procedures or go virtual by month's end

School districts in Westmoreland, Armstrong and Allegheny counties have until 5 p.m. Nov. 30 to switch to full remote instruction or affirm that they are complying with the state’s covid-19 safety measures.

Gov. Tom Wolf and Secretary of Health Rachel Levine announced the new directive Monday for all public schools in counties that have experienced a “substantial” level of transmission of the covid-19 virus for at least two consecutive weeks.

As of Friday, with cases spiking across most of the state, there were 59 of Pennsylvania’s 67 counties that had seen those heightened case levels since Nov. 6 — including Westmoreland, Armstrong and Allegheny, according to state data.

In response to the state directive, Jeannette City School Board voted Monday to switch to full remote instruction for all grade levels until Jan. 18. The board reserved the option of reconsidering the move if the county’s covid-19 transmission level recedes into the state’s “moderate” level.

Previously, Jeannette students had a choice of virtual learning or attending classes in person.

At the same time, Franklin Regional School Board voted 6-3 in favor of full online instruction Dec. 1-4, following the Thanksgiving holiday. The district will return to its current instructional model Dec. 7.

Hempfield Area School District this week moved to full remote instruction for students at the high school, Harrold Middle School and West Point Elementary, an instructional model that is expected to continue until at least Dec. 1. The district has reported confirmed or presumed covid-19 cases in each of its school buildings.

Ligonier Valley school officials last week decided to move students fully remote through Dec. 4 because of the “substantial” level of coronavirus transmission in the county.

The Deer Lakes School District, likewise, opted for remote only learning until at least Dec. 7, citing rising virus cases.

Highlands School District voted Monday to use only remote learning starting Dec. 1 and continuing until Jan. 15. All extracurricular activities and sports will be suspended during that time.

Wolf and Levin said chief administrators and the president or chairperson of the governing body of each affected school district must sign an attestation form stating they have either transitioned to full remote learning or are complying with state health orders — including use of face coverings — if they are conducting any in-person instruction while in the substantial range of transmission.

Districts that don’t sign the form must suspend all extracurricular activities while their county remains at the substantial level.

A school must comply with updated protocols if a covid-19 case is identified in one of its buildings.

Pennsylvania State Education Association President Rich Askey called the new state directive for schools a “step in the right direction,” adding, “The health and safety of students, staff and their families must be our top priority.”

According to the Covid-19 Early Warning Monitoring System dashboard, Westmoreland County increased from 152.9 to 249.3 cases per 100,000 residents over the two weeks. At the same time, the positivity rate in the county jumped from 8.3% to 10.9%.

Allegheny County cases increased from 141.2 to 211.9 per 100,000 residents in the same period. That county’s positivity rate rose from 7.7% to 9%. In Armstrong County, case numbers rose from 315.6 to 357 per 100,000 residents while the positivity rate there took a slight dip, from 15.7% to 14.3%.