Written by Amanda Angulo
Newsom has once again gotten in the way of our advancements in San Diego County. On Sunday night, three school districts in the County were denied waivers to resume in-person learning. The school districts are: San Dieguito Union High School District, Carlsbad Unified School District, and Poway Unified School District.
Their waivers were rejected by the state and when the superintendents asked Dr. Naomi Bardach for an appeal, she was unwilling to change her mind, claiming that the decision was final. Dr. Bardach is also Gov. Newsom’s representative for the Safe Schools for All Team.
These superintendents, families, and staff are frustrated that their efforts have been unseen and that students are the ones to face the consequences. The three districts sent letters to families and staff as soon as they were made aware of the fact that their waivers were not approved by the State.
In the letters, all three agree with the fact that the waiver has been wrongly denied and on the basis of something that is nearly impossible. They all stated, “We are incredibly frustrated and angered by this arbitrary and uninformed decision, as the application had the full support of the San Diego County Public Health Officer, Dr. Wilma Wooten, and her team, after a thorough review.”
Poway Unified School District’s (PUSD) letter went even further, explaining all the efforts that have been made. Handbooks, COVID-19 protocols, filtration and ventilation systems, mask requirements, cleaning protocols, and more were put in place for the safety of everyone at the school.
PUSD’s letter also explains that the reason for which the waivers were denied was because San Diego school districts do not plan to keep students with one single teacher for the whole day. This is something that is not seen in classrooms. Several teachers have their own courses to teach and students have different classes and schedules.
Kim Pheps, the superintendent for PUSD also wrote that if San Diego County continues to decline in COVID-19 case rates, then the county is projected to move into the red tier, which means that schools are allowed to reopen regardless of what the state has decided.
The districts’ applications to resume in-person instruction were supported by San Diego County Health Officer Dr. Wilma Wooten, further demonstrating that Newsom’s administration and the supporting Democrats are not following the science. Experts and the CDC have approved and support the idea of students returning to in-person instruction as well.
Photo via ShutterStock
