Both Mount Vernon and Lisbon School Districts outlined their district’s return to learn plans the week of Aug. 9.
Mount Vernon is recommending all students, staff and visitors wear masks when social distancing of three to six feet cannot be consistently maintained.
As noted in a letter from Mount Vernon superintendent Greg Batenhorst, school districts cannot put into place any mask mandate, due to Iowa House File 847 passed by the Iowa State Legislature in May 2021.
The district has taken into account guidance from the Center for Disease Control and American Association of Pediatrics, who both recommend wearing masks when in indoor spaces when social distancing can not be followed.
Masks will be required to be worn by anyone using school transportation, including for extra-curricular activities. School buses are considered federal transportation, and are subject to the federal guidelines on masks and mask wearing.
The district is also recommending all people eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine should get the vaccine unless a medical or religious reason precludes them from doing so.
The free breakfast and lunch program that was in place for the 2020-21 school year has returned for the 2021-22 school year.
Visitors to schools will be allowed on a limited basis, with building principals having discretion on handling requests to visit area schools.
Any student who tests positive for COVID-19 are subject to quarantine for the duration of the illness. Anyone who has close contact with someone will not have to be quarantined.
Batenhorst noted this return to learn plan, much like it was last school year, is fluid and parents can expect changes to happen at any time due to changes in guidance, laws and conditions on the ground due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“For those of you who embrace freedom in making decisions regarding mask wearing and whether or not to be vaccinated, please accept that people on the other side of these issues have great fears for their own safety and the safety of their loved ones,” Batenhorst said. “For those of you who believe in the wearing of masks and in being vaccinated, please accept that people on the other side are also driven by what they feel is best for them and their loved ones. We can continue to debate and discuss the big issues of the day with one another, let’s just make sure we continue to do so respectfully.”
Batenhorst noted the district will focus on creating a culture of caring, advice from a parent at the school board meeting in August.
Lisbon SchoolsLisbon’s return to learn plan is very similar to that outlined by Mount Vernon School District.
Like all schools in Iowa, Lisbon is restricted from putting in place a mask mandate.
Lisbon will be offering 100 percent in-person learning this school year. There will be no online learning option this school year. Lisbon superintendent Pat Hocking noted the district will allow open enrollment to any other school district instead of the Edmentum program this year.
Lisbon Schools will have a personal choice on whether students use face coverings in the building or not.
“We encourage students to be respectful of people’s choices regarding face coverings,” Hocking said. “We will have a zero tolerance policy for any bullying when it comes to mask wearing, either for or against that matter.”
“I can’t reiterate enough that we as a district have no choice on ability to enforce mask wearing at the local level,” said Lisbon School board member Abbe Stensland. “Parents can choose what their families will be doing. I encourage everyone to be respectful and empathetic to everyone on this issue. It was not that way for everyone last year.”
Any students who ride a school bus will need to wear a face covering. Because the district receives federal funding to operate school buses, buses need to adhere to the federal guidelines on mask wearing when using the transportation. The mask guidance includes for extra-curricular activities that utilize buses for transportation.
Parents can opt to transport their students to school on their own as well as provide transportation to and from extra-curricular events.
Vaccines will not be required for employees or staff at the Lisbon School district.
Students will not need to quarantine if they come in close contact with a case of COVID-19.
Anyone diagnosed with COVID-19 will be encouraged to stay home for 10 days after symptoms were first discovered.
Hocking noted that the district will notify parents of students in elementary classrooms of any COVID-19 cases in those grades, but notifications will not occur in middle and high school. Hocking noted because the vaccine isn’t available for elementary students currently, keeping families abreast of an infection in a classroom is more important.
“When we know about a case, we will be in contact with those impacted about that positive case,” Hocking said.
Lisbon will be limiting volunteers and those visiting the school building again this school year. All visits must be approved for an educational purpose.
Aside from kindergarten classrooms, all students will eat lunch in the cafeteria this year.
Lisbon Schools elementary principal Justin Brown noted that kindergartners eating lunch in their classrooms was seen as a positive thing from many teachers, noting students were more likely to finish their lunches because there were fewer distractions.
Mount Vernon, Lisbon outline return to learn plans
August 19, 2021
About the Contributor
Nathan Countryman, Editor
Nathan Countryman is the Editor of the Mount Vernon-Lisbon Sun.