District 46 Students Will Stay Remote Until Next Year

GRAYSLAKE, IL — Community Consolidated School District 46 will not be moving to a hybrid plan until January at the earliest, school officials said. The decision comes after Lake County has seen a spike in coronavirus cases in recent weeks, and the Lake County Department of Health's announcement Wednesday that schools should shift to remote learning.

The decision to push back its move to a hybrid plan to next year is meant to allow parents and students to plan so they aren't "wondering each week whether we will be able to open onsite the next week," CCSD46 Superintendent Lynn Glickman wrote in a letter to parents Tuesday. The school district will also temporarily close its Safe Center, she said.

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Last week, the rolling average number of daily new cases in the county rose past the threshold for what is considered "substantial" community spread of the virus — 14 cases per 100,000 people — to an average of 22.7 new cases per 100,000 people on Saturday, the most recent day for which data was available from the Illinois Department of Public Health.

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According to the return to school metrics, a virtual learning model is suggested anytime the seven-day rolling average daily incidence rate reaches the level. Hybrid learning is permitted under the metrics at the "moderate" level — whenever the rate is between seven and 14 daily new cases per 100,000 residents.

Hybrid learning will not happen in District 46 until the incidence rate is below 14, Glickman said. Meanwhile, students will remain in remote learning and teachers will prepare for a possible return to school with a hybrid model in January.

"Again, this announcement is made with great disappointment. We know how excited students have been feeling about coming to school and how strongly some families feel about wanting students to be back onsite," Glickman wrote in her Wednesday letter to parents. "We are so eager to get our students back in our schools. However, we must do so in a way that is as safe as possible for all involved."

Also on Wednesday, the Lake County Department of Health urged school to consider moving to remote learning amid a surge in COVID-19 cases.

"This is not a recommendation we take lightly," Executive Director Mark Pfister said in a statement. "Schools are being asked to utilize virtual learning not because schools are the main driver of our new infections, but because the levels of community transmission warrant extra measures to keep our students, staff, and their families safe."

• Remote Learning Recommended Amid Rising Lake Co. Coronavirus Rate