Phased Reopening of In-Person Learning Planned for March 29

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Dear Long Beach Unified Community,

After nearly a year of mostly distance learning due to the global COVID-19 pandemic, we’re pleased to announce that the Long Beach Unified School District plans to begin a phased return of students to classrooms on March 29.

Early Grades Start First

Students returning on March 29 will be those from transitional kindergarten (TK) through grade five whose families have selected the hybrid schedule (part of the day at school, and part of the day learning at home). Families who prefer that their TK-5 students continue learning entirely at home through the online setting can continue with that option.

The return of TK-5 students to in-person learning assumes that the adjusted COVID case rate in Los Angeles County remains below 25 cases per 100,000 people, as specified by the California Department of Public Health’s most recent guidelines for school reopenings. The case rate this week fell below that threshold and has declined significantly in recent weeks.

LBUSD continues to partner with Long Beach Health and Human Services to vaccinate all school district employees who want the COVID vaccine. Thousands of LBUSD employees have received these vaccines in recent weeks, with priority going to public-facing employees and teachers in the early grades. LBUSD’s TK-5 teachers who return to the in-person setting will have been offered both the first and second doses of the usual two-dose vaccine regimen. These teachers would return to their classrooms March 22 to prepare for students’ return as distance learning continues.

Middle Grades and High Schools

California’s public health criteria are more stringent for the reopening of middle and high schools than they are for elementary grades. Middle and high school grade levels may reopen for in-person learning if the county remains in the state-determined “red tier” for at least five days. Under this red tier, seven-day average case rates are between four and seven cases per 100,000 people, and seven-day average testing positivity is between 5% and 8%. As with the elementary grades, in-person learning will be offered but not required of students when such reopenings are allowed by the state. Students will have the option of continuing with all-online learning or instead participating in-person on a hybrid schedule.

Assuming Los Angeles County meets the state’s public health criteria, middle and high school in-person learning on hybrid schedules would begin on this timeline:

• April 19 – Grade 12
• April 20 – Grades 6 to 8
• April 26 – Grades 9 to 11

Middle and high school teachers would return to classrooms April 12 to prepare for students’ return as distance learning continues.

Health and Safety Enhancements in the Hybrid Learning Setting

The safety of employees and students is the school district’s first priority. Throughout the month of February, the school district is providing updates and information, including videos of what classrooms look like with social distancing, sanitation and other safety measures in place. View an example here.

Deep cleaning, sanitizing and disinfecting of classroom surfaces will occur on a routine basis, and additional health and safety training has been provided for school leaders.

Other Safety Enhancements

• Students who return to in-person learning will go through a daily health screening process, as will school staff.
• Students will be required to wear a face covering. Students’ desks will be six feet apart from one another.
• Elementary students will stay with their cohort, or their own group of students and adult staff while they are on campus, minimizing the number of interactions that staff and students have with others.
• COVID testing of students and staff is planned.

COVID Testing Details

If Los Angeles County remains in the most restrictive purple tier as determined by the state, all staff and students who return to in-person instruction will be required to participate in weekly anterior nasal swab, asymptomatic testing at school. This means that although students and staff don’t have COVID symptoms, they would be subject to the testing as an additional safety measure. “Anterior nasal” is the front of the nose. This kind of swab is less invasive than other tests that go deeper to the middle or the back of the nose. Once Los Angeles County is in the less restrictive tier, asymptomatic testing may be reduced or discontinued. Final details related to the type of testing and testing administration will be shared when available. 

Existing In-Person Services

Using many of the health and safety protocols described above, LBUSD in recent months has been successfully providing in-person learning in preschool and day care settings during the pandemic, serving more 1,600 children of essential workers in Child Development Centers and at Kids Club and Head Start locations. View video.

More Information

Visit lbschools.net/coronavirus for the latest updates and LBUSD’s Coronavirus Pandemic School Opening and Safety Plan, which includes additional information on health and safety protocols, COVID reporting, facility cleaning and sanitation, instructional programs, special education and mental health, athletics and extracurricular activities. This plan was first published in August 2020. A revised version will be posted and redistributed in the coming days to reflect the most current information.

Thank you to everyone in our school communities for your support as we work toward brighter days ahead.

Sincerely,

Jill

Jill Baker, Ed. D.
Superintendent of Schools