CDA superintendent outlines reopening plans

Coeur d’Alene School District Superintendent Steve Cook chose not to participate in Tuesday’s Upbeat Breakfast with the Coeur d’Alene Chamber of Commerce, but he did respond in writing to a request from The Press regarding the district’s fall reopening hopes.

Here is what he said:

“At Coeur d’Alene Public Schools, we are in the midst of building our plan for school this fall and will have a proposal ready to share within the next three weeks. We are committed to doing everything we can to support student learning and we hope that we can be full time and face to face in our schools. However, providing for the safety of our students and staff remains paramount as we strive to come back together in the new school year.

“Right now we are gathering feedback on a variety of questions from our parents, students and district staff. Those surveys will close on July 24. Our board of trustees will meet next Monday with Lora Whalen, executive director of Panhandle Health District, to hear her input and to ask questions that will help us refine the plan we are developing. On Aug. 3 our draft plan will be presented to the board, so the trustees can give us their feedback then. We also will take public comments on the plan over the following three weeks, before the board reconvenes Aug. 24 for a vote to approve the plan.

“The plans we are developing will spell out the criteria for how we deliver teaching and learning during a pandemic which depends on the level of community transmission, similar to the guidance provided by the plan developed and approved by the Idaho State Board of Education. Our plans also will detail how we respond when we have a positive case in a school.

“When community transmission is minimal to none, that will give us the most flexibility in how our schools operate. If we have widespread or substantial community spread, as we are seeing in our community right now, that will make it more challenging to maintain full-time face-to-face instruction. Therefore, our plan will need to provide a range of safety measures to implement in schools to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. Our goal is to provide engaging learning under whatever conditions we are experiencing.”