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By Dylana Kneeshaw

VIRUS PREVENTION IN SCHOOLS

School District 73 looks toward ‘near-normal’ return in September without cohorts

Jun 17, 2021 | 4:06 PM

KAMLOOPS — Ahead of September’s return to school, the provincial government announced Thursday (June 17) that $43.6 million will be earmarked for health and safety measures and student supports. And should case transmission continue to decline, schools will go without the cohort system in the fall.

The province says schools were not significant sources of virus transmission and, with high vaccination rates, the cohort measures will not be needed.

The Kamloops-Thompson School District has experienced COVID-19 exposures throughout the pandemic, but not as many as schools in the Okanagan or Lower Mainland.

When asked how the cohorts and other safety measures have worked, Superintendent Terry Sullivan says the implementation of those protocols is likely why schools weren’t hit harder with virus exposures. He credits teachers and support staff, custodial teams and district leadership for securing schools early on in the school year.

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“I visited every single school this year and every (district) workplace and certainly I’ve seen the transition and the very hard work that was being done all year long, so I don’t think it’s an accident. We had 40 schools close temporarily in the province this year. We never lost a single day in this district.”

When students go back to class in the fall, daily health checks and cleaning measures will still be required. But if cases stay on the decline, some of the limits on gatherings, extracurricular activities and sports will no longer be needed.

“I think they’re being purposefully vague with respect to that because I think they just want to proceed very cautiously and monitor cases over the summer and see where we are,” notes Sullivan, “I think ‘new normal’ is a good description of where we’re going to be in September.”

The province stated Thursday that guidance on wearing masks in school settings will be confirmed later this summer.