Falls Church City Schools Bring Back Another Group Of Students

FALLS CHURCH, VA — Additional students have returned to Falls Church City Public Schools for in-person instruction as the school district continues to monitor coronavirus health metrics.

Superintendent Peter Noonan provided the update on the return of students during a Tuesday school board meeting. On Tuesday, kindergarten students at Mount Daniel Elementary and third grade students at Thomas Jefferson Elementary returned for hybrid learning. FCCPS reported in Wednesday's newsletter that there were temperature checks before students went to classrooms. Noonan spent the day at Mount Daniel Elementary and even stepped in as a bus aide, providing temperature checks.

Classrooms were reported to be half full for morning and afternoon sessions with social-distant spacing between students.

"Our students very clearly are six feet apart or more," said Noonan. "All of our students today had no problems wearing their masks throughout the entire day. There was one young person where it kept slipping down below his nose, and we kept reminding him to pull it up, and he was doing that. But I want to assure the board and assure our community that all of our kindergarten students did a fantastic job wearing their masks today, sanitizing, washing their hands and keeping their social distance."

Noonan added that FCCPS has refined the ventilation systems at all schools to allow maximum outdoor air through the ventilation systems. There is work underway to upgrade filters at all schools.

The latest return of students came after the school district started bringing back the first wave of students, those with special needs and English language learners, in October.

The rest of the elementary students are scheduled to return on Nov. 17. Families have an option of sending students for hybrid learning (virtual and in person) or virtual-only learning. Secondary students from sixth to 12th grade will have the option to transition to a hybrid schedule on Jan. 12 or remain in virtual-only learning.

The school board meeting also included an update on coronavirus health metrics that factor into decisions about bringing back students. FCCPS has a dashboard of health metrics based on regular reports from the Fairfax County Health Department, which covers the city.

Health metrics on the dashboard are based on the Northern Virginia region as a whole, but Noonan said FCCPS must also consider transmission rates for the region and City of Falls Church-specific data.

The latest health department update to FCCPS indicated there has been a "gentle rise" of cases in Northern Virginia. The overall composite rating for Northern Virginia is moderate, which is based on eight Virginia Department of Health Metrics, including case incidence rates and percent positivity of tests. If the region gets into the high level, Noonan said FCCPS would likely pause the return of students but not dial back.

As for the school district itself, Noonan said there have been no reported cases among students in person and one case involving teacher who has been teaching virtually. FCCPS reevaluates every week when it gets data from the Fairfax County and Virginia health departments.

"I just want to assure the board and the community that we're not going to do anything that we believe would put students at risk," said Noonan. "The mitigation strategies, the work that's happening, and you saw it in the classrooms today from the pictures, are those strategies that will keep our students safe."

Key resources for FCCPS reopening

• Reopening metrics dashboard
• Elementary reopening plan
• Secondary reopening plan