Health officials release data benchmarks to help school leaders decide when to reopen

Arizona can use COVID-19 case knowledge to reopen the soft green for face-to-face courses as a component of the state landmarks revealed Thursday.

But if schools stick to suggestions, it may still be at least several weeks before reopening is a serious possibility.

State officials advised schools the number of COVID-19 instances in Arizona counties, as well as two other points of knowledge. However, schools are not required to use the parameters in their decision-making process.

The Director of the Arizona Department of Health Services, Cara Christ, and the Superintendent of Public Education, Kathy Hoffman, the new criteria.

The state plan suggests that schools may open with minimal to moderate flow in the community, but take vital precautions, such as keeping some academics at home, requiring mask and physical distance.

Hoffman said Arizona communities were at least weeks away from assembling the 3 benchmarks, in existing LOCAL COVID-19 data.

Schools could completely open, with fewer precautions, when there’s minimal community spread. 

The 3 baselines that will consult the decisions to reopen the consultants are:

Last July, Gov. Doug Ducey ordered the Arizona Department of Health Services to propose coronavirus benchmarks for school leaders, setting a August 7 deadline. Health officials have exceeded this one-day deadline.

Many Arizona students, adding in the state’s two largest school districts, Mesa and Chandler, go to school this week from home.

According to Ducey’s existing decree, schools should take into account the criteria established through fitness officers, as well as the recommendation of county fitness officers. Schools will also need to open in some way on August 17 for students who do not have a position to spend the day.

Hoffman stated that the requirement is to protect vulnerable academics and that districts only have to open one site, or possibly even marry an outdoor organization like Boys and Girls Club to meet this requirement.

The resolution of basing the resolve to reopen on benchmarks follows in the footsteps of states like New York, which have established a knowledge repository based on network infection rates. New York set its benchmark long before Arizona, the school year starts here regularly before new York.

Maricopa County officials said Wednesday at a news convention that they would create a knowledge board for school officials.

Contact the reporter on [email protected] or her on Twitter @LilyAlta.

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