The Learning Curve: One School District Stayed Open - and Didn't Have Problems [voiceofsandiego.org]

By Will Huntsberry, Voice of San Diego, August 13, 2020

On a recent Thursday, David Miyashiro, superintendent of Cajon Valley Union School District, stood outside of Chase Avenue Elementary in El Cajon waiting on a reporter (me, that is) so he could begin a tour. Miyashiro was dressed in a polo shirt with his district’s logo and long, baggy black shorts, reminiscent of ‘90s-era basketball. He had on black New Balances with white socks. Despite his casual appearance, he was anxious to get going, like a dad waiting on dithering kids at the zoo. Miyashiro had been trying to convince the county Health and Human Services Agency to send someone to see the work he’d been doing: namely, keeping his schools running over the summer at roughly 30 percent capacity. On this day, the department finally sent someone.

Miyashiro wanted to make it clear that schools can in fact be opened safely. He wanted the county representative to see this neatly ordered world he created, so that such a program might be brought to other schools districts across California. The tour took visitors through a day in the life of students and teachers in the middle of a pandemic. Parents can no longer get out of their vehicles when they drop students off. They must arrive during a pre-scheduled window. Before entering the school, students and visitors have their temperature checked with a forehead-scanning thermometer. A school worker standing near the entrance gate asks if they have had any symptoms or been in contact with someone with COVID-19.

Inside, school life is different – but not too different. Most classrooms have anywhere from seven to 10 students and one or two adults. Everyone is wearing a mask or a face shield. (The youngest kids are allowed to pull theirs down if they need a breath.) The students are spread out at desks, more than six feet apart. One classroom is studying famous people. (“I thought, ‘OK great we’ll do George Washington, Harriet Tubman and Martin Luther King Jr.,’” said the teacher. “But no, they wanted to do Johnny Depp, John Cena and Kobe Bryant.” Is Johnny Depp still cool?) Another class is practicing space raps. (“I’m a hip-hop astronaut. Yeah, yeah. /I’m a hip-hop astronaut. Yeah, boy. /Got my space suit on cuz my gravitiy’s gone. /And I’m dancing out in space like Neil Armstrong.”)

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