Sharon Bernstein and Joseph Ax

SACRAMENTO (California) – Jennifer Pierre, a parent of millions in America, describes how it is to manage a complex network of COVID-19 school policies during the third year of the pandemic.

The mother from Sacramento, California said that it was exhausting this week.

Her 13-year old daughter, and her 10-year-old son are happy to return to school after months of distant learning which had hampered their social development. But even with her school district’s strict safety protocols, she worries about whether the surging Omicron variant https://tmsnrt.rs/2WTOZDR will lead to further closures and on what grounds those will be decided.

Pierre, forty, said that 2020 is the better option. He suggested staying home to wash his hands and not touch anyone. “The rules don’t seem clear.”

Schools in the United States follow different protocols. Some schools require regular testing or mask use. Others do not. While many schools are still open to in-person learning and some shut down abruptly, others are not. Some schools let students who have been exposed to COVID stay at school while others send them back home for five to fourteen days.

According to Burbio (a website that monitors school disruptions), nearly 5,000 schools were either closed or relocated this week because of COVID-19.

Many parents feel frustrated, angry and even left to their decisions about whether their children can go to school in this confusing environment.

Kristen Verrier is 46 and is currently managing two children in New Jersey. She has one child who was attending the school via remote learning, while another is at class in person. Kristen also manages a daughter of college age who took a year off to help with the effects of the pandemic.

Verrier, who is president of River Dell Regional’s parent-teacher association, said that she too faces questions from parents dealing with the daily judgement calls of pandemic life.

“What should we be doing?” she said they ask, as they grapple with things like whether to send a student to attend a sports practice even if school is shut down.

CHICKEN POX PPARTY’

Yelena wheeler is yet to send her two children, ages 5 & 8, to Burbank in California. This was just two weeks after the winter break.

Because of the constantly changing safety regulations and absence of rigorous testing protocols within their area, the hospital dietician decided that teaching their children at home would be a better option than having to go to an emergency room.

She stated that the virus was rampant and she didn’t want her to take part in “chicken pox” parties.

Taylor Calderone had every intention of sending her daughter 8 years old and son 6 years old back to River Edge in New Jersey for their first school trip since the outbreak. She changed her mind just hours before she was due to get up in the morning to go to school on Jan. 2.

Her fears regarding the Omicron variation and the “long COVID” constellation of symptoms, which some patients report experiencing for many weeks or even months following recovery from primary infections, led her to make a change. Her family can handle the situation, even though it’s not ideal, after almost two years of homeschooling.

“What we all want for our kids right now is their childhood back,” said Calderone, 37, a stay-at-home mom. “It’s so hard to provide them with a sense of security and comfort – and then when we make these predictions and they turn out not to be true. Navigating that space has been really difficult.”

Others have had to make quick decisions as Omicron spread worries led to a variety of districts to announce the cancellations of school days and for teachers to walk out in protest at what they consider unsafe working conditions.

The Biden administration this week announced a new set of measures https://www.reuters.com/world/us/first-new-covid-19-tests-arrive-schools-week-jan-24-white-house-2022-01-13 aimed at keeping classrooms open, including doubling COVID-19 testing capacity in schools with 10 million more tests.

According to school officials, they’ve made outreach efforts in order for parents to be informed about any changes in the rules governing public health.

Frances Baez (an area superintendent) said that the Los Angeles school board had just voted to mandate a baseline COVID-19 for all students. A massive communication effort was then launched to inform parents about the decision. This included social media postings, emails, and local news interviews.

Cecily Myart – Cruz, president of United Teachers Los Angeles, stated that even though the second largest school district in America has the best protections for both teachers and students, disruptions can still be expected.

She said, “No one can have a plan for the moment.”

Eve Tronson, a Los Angeles mother is sending her children to kindergarten and middle school. However she wants to minimize risk in their daily lives. The family upgraded their masks and resisted indoor dining at restaurants. They also restricted play dates.

Tronson said, “They need to have social interaction and some consistency.” I pray we can get it over with.