Arizona education group leader approves of school benchmarks
Aug 6, 2020, 6:30 PM | Updated: 9:46 pm
(Adam Robison/The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal via AP)
(Adam Robison/The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal via AP)
PHOENIX — The head of a Phoenix-based education nonprofit is giving the thumbs up to the newly released health benchmarks that guide schools on when it’s safe to reopen amid the coronavirus pandemic.
“These benchmarks look actually pretty good,” Mark Joraanstad, executive director of the Arizona School Administrators, told KTAR News 92.3 FM’s Gaydos and Chad Thursday. “I’ve talked with a few of our superintendents and not too many complaints overall about the benchmarks themselves.”
His group had sent a letter to Gov. Doug Ducey and Superintendent of Public Instruction Kathy Hoffman in July, asking for health metrics for schools to reopen for in-person learning.
“Well, now they’ve provided it, so we got what we asked for,” he said.
The Arizona Department of Health Services released the much-anticipated benchmarks Thursday. They include a recommendation of a positive rate of 7% or less for two consecutive weeks in order to give clearance for schools to return to any in-person instruction.
Case rates also should be less than 100 per 100,000 people or see a two-week decline in the number of cases. Hospital visits due to COVID-19-like illness should also be under 10%.
RELATED STORIES
Joraanstad said he’s especially pleased to see the benchmarks include guidance on the COVID-19 test positivity rate that schools need to see before it’s safe to reopen.
“We felt that that was important — that indicator of community spread and we wanted that one to be in there,” he said.
He added it will now be up to school district leaders to make decisions about reopening schools using the health benchmarks.
“If you choose to disregard these guidelines, bear in mind then you’re quite possibly opening up the district to some liability,” he said.
