VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Virginia Beach City Public Schools said COVID-19 health metrics for the Eastern Virginia Region put Virginia Beach into the red/red zone as outlined in its Fall 2020 Plan.
Because of that, the division said it would continue with virtual instruction which included designated groups of students with disabilities who recently returned to in-person learning.
Annie Earls' daughter, Bella, has autism. Earls said virtual learning is nearly impossible for the 12-year-old girl. She said Bella going back and forth from virtual to in-person is really affecting Bella because she thrives on a routine.
“She’s expected to log in from 10:20 to 4 p.m., and she can log in for about 10 minutes, maybe 20, for her whole day,” Earls said. “It’s devastating for me to watch my kid not have the access to education. It really gets me emotional because I feel like a lot of kids struggling even typical kids, but kids like Bella who can’t learn that way she just gets left behind.”
Superintendent Dr. Aaron Spence shared the information about the change with families and staff members Monday afternoon. He added that all activities related to varsity winter sports were postponed until further notice.
As of Tuesday (December 8) Safe Learning Centers (SLC) will be closed and access to school buildings and administrative offices will be available to students and families by appointment only.
Spence said if there is a special circumstance, such as the need to arrange for testing or to pick up personal items belonging to a student, parents should make arrangements by appointment with a child’s school.
Food service will continue. VBCPS is providing breakfast, lunch and dinner at no charge to all children (18 and younger) at all VBCPS schools, regardless of individual eligibility or whether they receive instruction virtually or in-person.
The meals are provided via the drive by/pickup model, with bagged meals provided Monday through Friday, 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. The Friday bag contains food for Saturday and Sunday. The bus delivery service will continue to select neighborhoods.
“The consistency we’ve been able to offer so far, because I know it feels inconsistent, is the consistent application of what we’ve said," Spence told 13News Now. "If the metrics do this, then this is what we are going to do, and we, so far, have been very consistent with that.”
The Virginia Department of Health reported a 10.7 COVID percent positivity rate for Virginia Beach on Monday. Virginia Beach Health Department Officials said they expect it to surge even higher than that.
“This was about where we maxed out at, back in the spring time," said VBHD Senior Nurse Manager, Laurie Shaw. "It looks like we are going to exceed that rapidly.”
Shaw said they are seeing anywhere between 175 to 225 new COVID cases a day.
“We still see people in and out of stores without masks on, they are not social distancing," Shaw said.
She said they are starting to see cases from Thanksgiving, a huge worry with Christmas two and a half weeks away.
“Still, the tail end of Halloween that we are seeing," Shaw said.
School officials work closely with the health department. Shaw said if you have symptoms, don’t wait.
“If they definitely have symptoms, then they need to call their provider or check with one of the labs and get tested," Shaw said.
Employees who have questions about their workplace or status should contact their supervisor.
Employees called to work onsite have to do so at the time requested of them. If someone has a medical condition that puts him/her at higher risk for severe illness from COVID-19, that person should get in touch with his or her supervisor.
Spence said the school division would continue to monitor the numbers, which it posts every weekday on its COVID-19 webpage.
Once the trend for the Eastern Virginia Region goes back to yellow/red, VBCPS plans to return designated groups of students with disabilities to class and reopen the SLCs after seven days.
If within those seven days the health metrics trend to a combination of red/red, VBCPS will maintain all virtual instruction and start the seven-day countdown again from whenever the metrics trend back to a combination that includes yellow.