Dear Penn-Delco family:
I am pleased to be in a position to finally reach out with promising news on the prospect of increased in-person learning for our students. As you know, for months the school district has been sympathetic to the pleas from parents for additional in-person learning time for their children.
There is no question that the current provision of 2 days of in-person hybrid instruction has been less than ideal for too many students; and a particular challenge for parents of our youngest students. Public health directives for distancing have prevented us from bringing back all cohorts to the classroom simultaneously…until now.
Given the significant drop in COVID rates throughout the region combined with the impressive evidence of schools operating as such a safe public space throughout this period, the Chester County Health Department (CCHD) has revised its guidance to support schools by “increasing more in-person learning through reduced physical distancing”. It is now evident that the district will be able to merge cohorts to minimally double the time of in-person instruction, and still meet updated social distancing guidelines.
The updated guidance, which has been driven by clear and compelling evidence about the efficacy of a multi-layered mitigation approach, is well-timed for our district as the COVID metrics in Penn-Delco are favorable. There continues to be no measurable in-school transmission of the virus, cases in our municipalities are at multi-month lows, and the number of persons placed in quarantine has slowed to a trickle. Thankfully, it appears we are seeing the clouds shift with brighter days ahead.