County Of Los Angeles - Update 2/16/21 - Re-Opening Elementary Schools

Press release from the Venice Chamber of Commerce:

February 16, 2021

Update 2/16/21

Getting Students Back Into the Classroom Safely

Following state guidelines, grades TK-6 can reopen in counties where the adjusted case rate has been below 25 per 100,000 residents for five days. Los Angeles County reached that much-anticipated milestone on February 15.

Students in grades TK – 6 are permitted on-site learning if the school is in full compliance with state and county directives. Many of the directives are not new and very familiar to schools that re-opened under the waiver program or for services for high-need students.

School Re-opening Actions + On-Going Permitted School Activities

Elementary schools in LA County fall into two groups: those that are already open for in-classroom instruction for an entire class of students in grades TK-2 through the waiver program and those that are not open for full-grade in class instruction.

Schools already open through an approved waiver need to post their COVID Safety Plan prior to expanding in-class instruction to students grades 3-6. There are 297 elementary schools with approved waivers.

Schools not yet open need to submit their required COVID Safety Plan for review by CDPH and LA County Public Health, along with completing the county re-opening protocol checklist. If no concerns are noted in seven working days by either the state or county health departments, they are permitted to open on day eight as long as they follow the safety requirements and protocols detailed in state and county directives.

For grades 7 through 12, reopening will not be permitted until our case rate drops below 7 per 100,000 people.

Los Angeles County School: Rising to the Challenge of
COVID-19

Timely and accurate communication with school staff and families has perhaps never been more important as educators navigate the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Los Angeles County Office of Education developed this toolkit to support the region’s 80 K-12 districts in their communication with stakeholders. Included are templates for messages on a variety of topics pertinent to COVID-19 and school reopening.

LACOE is dedicated to supporting our education community in rising to the challenge of the pandemic for the benefit of students, families and school employees.

We hope you find these resources helpful and will share these assets with your local education community.

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Update 2/8/21

Vaccine Second Dose Update, Safer at Work, and Milk, Bread & Hope for Children in Need

A daily collection of up-to-date content you can use to keep your community informed. Please copy, paste, download and share:

Vaccine Second Dose Update

The County is actively vaccinating healthcare workers, staff and residents at skilled nursing facilities and long-term care facilities, as well as Los Angeles County residents 65 and older.

Starting tomorrow, due to a short supply of vaccines from the State, County sites will only be administering second doses for the remainder of the week. To receive a vaccine at these sites, you must have an appointment or be due for your second dose at these locations, and provide the necessary documentation. If you did not receive an email for your second dose, you can still be seen at your designated location on the day of your second dose, as long as you provide proof of your first dose vaccination. Click here to learn more.

Safer at Work

The County of Los Angeles is committed to reopening the County as safely as possible. Resources are available at saferatwork.la for businesses, employees, and residents to help everyone thrive in the new normal.

You can help slow the spread of the virus. No matter in what capacity or setting; whether as an employee or customer, be sure to follow safety protocols to keep our communities safe and healthy.

Milk, Bread, & Hope for Children in Need

Children who suffer from food insecurity are at a much higher risk of cognitive problems. If you know a family with a newborn or a young child (ages 5 or younger) that is struggling, please encourage them to get the help they need. WIC is available for ongoing food support at: Myfamily.wic.ca.gov. In addition, food benefits are available to help families with children who are eligible for free or reduced-price school meals through the federal School Breakfast or National School Lunch programs. Visit cdss.ca.gov/pandemic-ebt for more info. #LetsFeedLACounty

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Update 2/1/21

Remaining Vigilant Against This Deadly Virus,
Small Business Stabilization Loan Program, and
COVID-19 Safety Compliance Certification Program

A daily collection of up-to-date content you can use to keep your community informed. Please copy, paste, download and share:

Remaining Vigilant Against This Deadly Virus

We are at a critical moment in the pandemic. We are all still living through the nightmare of a surge; last week, on average, 217 people died each day from COVID 19, and two days last week, we reported that more than 300 people died each day. This is the very real cost of following the public health rules.

The revised Health Officer Order issued on Friday is a detailed blueprint for everyone to follow to ensure we see a continued downward trend in the number of cases, hospitalizations and deaths. Some restrictions have been lifted, but now is not the time to relax. Now is the time to remain super vigilant against this deadly virus and continue to stay home as much as possible.

Let’s keep reminding each other of how important it is to follow the rules to protect ourselves, our friends, our essential workers. Together, Los Angeles County can keep working to reduce cases, hospitalizations, and deaths.

Small Business Stabilization Loan Program

Los Angeles County has launched the Small Business Stabilization Loan Program designed to provide eligible businesses with a competitive interest rate for loans ranging from $50,000 to $3 million.

The Small Business Stabilization Loan Program application portal opened on Jan. 28, and will remain open indefinitely. The Program offers technical assistance from partners who offer complementary online webinars, one-on-one financial consultations, application assistance, and an evaluation of a business' readiness to submit an LACDA loan application. Technical assistance is available in various languages, including English, Spanish, Chinese (Mandarin), and Korean.

For more information on the requirements to apply for the Small Business Stabilization Loan Program, please visit BizStabilization.lacda.org.

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Update 1/19/21

Important Updates About the COVID-19 Vaccine

Los Angeles County residents who are 65 years old and older can now register for COVID-19 vaccination appointments.

Residents in this high-priority age group should visit VaccinateLACounty.com to schedule their appointments, which will begin Wednesday, January 20th. Residents who don’t have computer access may call (833) 540-0473 between 8 a.m. and 8:30 p.m. for assistance with reservations.

The vaccine supply is still extremely limited, and Los Angeles County continues to urge patience as we work urgently with our federal and state partners to expand capacity and supply in the weeks ahead.

To ensure that people at higher risk of transmission and illness are vaccinated first, Los Angeles County has established a tier system. In addition to those 65+, priority for current vaccination is going to frontline health care workers and residents and staff at skilled nursing and long-term care facilities.

This strategy works to protect our entire community by ensuring that our most vulnerable and most critical healthcare workers do not get sick.

The opening of appointment registration for a new tier today comes as the County opens five large capacity vaccination sites across the County.

The five established sites, which were chosen for their regional accessibility and their ability to handle large capacities of people, are:

• Pomona Fairplex, 1101 W McKinley Ave., Pomona, CA 91768
• The Forum, 3900 W Manchester Blvd., Inglewood, CA 90305
• California State University, Northridge, 18111 Nordhoff St., Northridge, CA 91330
• L.A. County Office of Education, 12830 Columbia Way, Downey, CA 90242
• Six Flags Magic Mountain, 26101 Magic Mountain Pkwy., Valencia, CA 91355

These large-scale vaccination sites started operating Tuesday, January 19, and will be able to vaccinate approximately 4,000 people per day at each site, significantly increasing the number of people vaccinated. The large-scale vaccination sites will aim to vaccinate 500,000 Los Angeles County residents in a month.

Vaccinations are free, and available to all, regardless of immigration status or insurance coverage. For those who have insurance, coverage information may be requested as part of the appointment scheduling process.

In addition to the L.A. County operated sites, residents have other options for making an appointment for a vaccine. Currently, more than 75 pharmacies have registered to provide vaccinations, and we will continue to add more as more vaccines are available. Vaccine allocations are also going to large healthcare provider organizations like Kaiser Permanente and Providence Health and Services. In addition, residents may call their healthcare provider, as well, who may direct them to a preferred location for the vaccine.

For up-to-date information on LA County’s vaccine program, visit VaccinateLACounty.com.

This press release was produced by the Venice Chamber of Commerce. The views expressed are the author's own.