The La Mesa Spring Valley School District has plans to send students back to school on November 30. If San Diego County moves into the purple tier next week, those plans would have to be put on hold.
“It’s disappointing, but it’s where we are right now,” said Superintendent David Feliciano.
According to the guidelines, since the district did not reopen its schools yet if the county moves into the purple tier, the schools can not reopen for its hybrid in-person learning for at least five weeks.
The county must have at least three weeks of good numbers before it can move out of the purple tier. Then there would have to be two more consecutive weeks of good numbers for the district to be able to open its schools.
“If everything went perfectly and the rates immediately started going down again… the soonest we could reopen would be after we’re back from winter break,” said Feliciano.
Kristy Claytor is a working mother who has been helping her daughter Riley with distance learning. She said Riley is very excited to go to kindergarten on November 30. Claytor is not excited about the possible delay.
"I’m watching it week to week because I’m very anxious to go back to school,” Claytor said.
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Feliciano said the uncertainty of when schools will reopen is the most difficult.
“It tugs at your heart because I know kids are really excited about starting school, so it’s difficult to have to be in this place and not be able to tell people when it’s going to be," Feliciano said.
Claytor said she can only hope the county numbers will be better next week and the dreaded purple tier can be avoided.
To those who are not wearing masks and practicing social distancing, she says “If you don’t believe in it, believe in it for everybody else and protect everybody so these kids can go back to normal life.”
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