Dear Florence County,

Today I made a decision to close our school sooner than required by the state. There is no sole reason for this, but several. Specifically, there are no known cases of COVID-19 within Florence County or the surrounding area at this time.

The following are the collective reasons for my decision:

We have had the advantage of two (2) days of our staff and students not being together over the weekend. Rather than to lose the advantage gained in “social distancing” by returning for the next three (3) days, let’s take advantage of these two days, and the next three to turn our collective time away into three (3) consecutive weeks of social distancing. We do have extra time from limited use of inclement weather days this school year, which will help in this all with required instructional hours.

Additionally, the CDC (Center for Disease Control) came out with new recommendations late last week recommending closures be for a minimum of eight (8) consecutive weeks. Although we are closed only through April 5 at this time, if closures are moved to eight (8) weeks, we’ll have already had a little more than three (3) full weeks completed with this closure in combination with the state required closure.

The Facts - COVID-19 is highly contagious - double that of influenza. There is no vaccine, H1N1 (swine flu of 2009) had a vaccine months after it was discovered, and there were antiviral medicines to shorten recovery times. Even though there are no known cases here now, it’s likely only a matter of time in our region, and social spacing will help slow any progression when it does arrive.

If you have Internet access, please view the simulations on this website. These simulations illustrate how social distancing can slow the spread, so that medical facilities and professionals do not see significant spikes in cases, and can best serve and help those in need:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2020/world/corona-simulator/

Logistics of Educational Delivery - This matter presents numerous challenges, that will require my full commitment, and that of the district’s administration and supervisors to have uninterrupted time to process the challenges before us. In short, “equity in education delivery” will be closely scrutinized in any choices we make in providing alternative/virtual learning options, with some advocacy groups and parents already challenging schools that are a few weeks ahead of where we are. At this time, the Department of Public Instruction is not waiving hours of instruction. To make the best decisions possible, and to assure ALL students have equitable access and support for alternative/virtual instruction, there needs to be a significant commitment of time to build a framework for delivery, if this is even possible within the parameters before us. I am optimistic that we can create learning objectives with fidelity to meet and satisfy the expectations of the United States Department of Education and the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction. We will also have to prepare for the dissemination of technology, materials while ensuring connectivity to WiFi for those who do not have these necessary services.

Mental Health of Students - This is an uncharted time for this generation of students, and many adults for that matter; as uncertain as it can be for adults, it’s even more so for our youth. I’m concerned as to the mindset of our youth, and even if we did proceed with the next three days of instruction, what do those three days look like in supporting children who may be distracted by all that surrounds us in this conversation? Instead, let’s use the time to create space and slow the curve of this situation.

To close sooner than directed by the Governor’s office is not a decision I take lightly, especially in recognizing the challenges it creates for working families, specifically for childcare. Yet, it’s why after more consideration through the morning, discussing with my administrative team, and weighing the ever-changing dynamics, along with all the facts I’ve reviewed and considered over the weekend, I made the decision earlier today to hopefully provide ample time for you to make arrangements for these first three days of the workweek.

In addition to taking time tomorrow in discussing the next steps pertaining to education, we will also be discussing options for food service. Unfortunately, this may take a few days to get in place, but our goal is to assure that we are doing what we can to assist in providing meals for students in the days ahead. We are supposed to be receiving guidance in this matter at some point on Monday.

Please do visit our website regularly for updates. At this time, please do not send your child to the school to get their belongings or materials - we will soon share dates and times upon the conclusion of our Monday morning meetings.

The offices of each respective building will be open. If you have something that is needed, such as medication or other critical items, please call either office to arrange for pick-up.

Again, my many thanks for your patience and understanding during this time and in the weeks to come.

Sincerely,
Ben Niehaus, District Administrator

School District of Florence County

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