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New Pennsylvania guidelines say all Lehigh Valley schools should do virtual or hybrid learning when they reopen

Pennsylvania has released additional guidelines for how schools should reopen safely later this month.
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Pennsylvania has released additional guidelines for how schools should reopen safely later this month.
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Under new guidelines released Monday, all school districts in Lehigh and Northampton counties should start the school year either fully online or with a blended learning approach that mixes in-person and remote learning.

On Monday, the Department of Health and Department of Education provided an analysis showing the seven-day rate of transmission of the coronavirus in each county and grouped those rates into three categories: low, moderate and substantial. The department’s recommendation on how to reopen is based on those categories. The guidelines are not mandated.

“From the beginning of this pandemic, we have said that decisions would be based on science and on data,” state Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine said. “These recommendations use that data to help schools make local decisions.”

Districts that are in areas with a low transmission rate could adopt a partly remote or a full in-person instruction model. For areas with a moderate transmission rate, districts can use a blended approach or a fully remote model.

The state recommends a fully remote model for districts in communities with a substantial transmission rate. The state said Union County, in the center of the state, is the only Pennsylvania county in the substantial category.

Based on the state guidelines, Lehigh and Northampton counties would be in the moderate category, meaning full-time in-person learning would not be recommended by the state.

In the Lehigh Valley, districts are taking a number of different approaches to reopen. Allentown, like many other larger districts in the country, will reopen with all 17,000 students learning remotely, with the hope of having in-person classes in the fall. Other districts, such as Bethlehem Area, are reopening with a hybrid schedule with some students in the classroom and others learning online.

Some local districts might find themselves altering plans just weeks before school is scheduled to start. A few districts, such as Northern Lehigh, are planning to reopen with all students returning five days a week, although online options are available for students who prefer to learn remotely.

Monday afternoon, Northern Lehigh Superintendent Matthew Link said the district would revisit its plan at its board meeting Monday night.

The low risk category is for counties with fewer than 10 cases per 100,000 residents and less than 5% positivity rate in the last seven days. Moderate risk counties are those with more than 10 but less than 100 cases per 100,000 residents or between 5% and 10% positivity rate. Substantial risk applies to counties with more than 100 cases per 100,000 residents or more than a 10% positivity rate.

Northampton County’s incidence rate has been 28 new cases per 100,000 residents over the last week with a 2.9% positive test rate. Lehigh County has the same incidence rate with a positivity rate of 3.1%.

In a joint news call Monday, Levine and Education Secretary Pedro Rivera said schools could change instructional models after observing two consecutive weeks of the same designation. For example, a school offering a hybrid model of both in-person and remote classes in a county identified as “moderate” might consider transitioning to a fully in-person model if the county moves to “low” for two consecutive weeks.

But state officials also said districts should not bounce back and forth between remote and in-person plans based on the two-week data, although significant or widespread outbreaks may require districts to move to remote learning quickly.

The Pennsylvania State Education Association welcomed the recommendations but also continued to urge the state to provide more consistent directives.

“We still need state directives that make it absolutely clear that, in addition to wearing a mask, everyone must maintain 6 feet of social distance and when a school should close if a student or staff member tests positive for COVID-19,” PSEA President Rich Askey said in a news release.

Last month, the state released recommendations for schools to reopen, saying those that open their doors will have to follow strict social distancing rules. Masks will be required for those in schools.

Guidance to help districts when a coronavirus case has been identified at a school will be forthcoming, the state said.

Pennsylvania schools closed March 16, with students completing lessons virtually.

Morning Call reporter Jacqueline Palochko can be reached at 610-820-6613 or at jpalochko@mcall.com.