Henrico teachers, staff wary of return to school without updated safety plan

Henrico County Public Schools leaders sent an email to staff members on Thursday to address the surge in COVID-19 community transmission and let employees know that the school system's health committee will meet Monday – the same day students and staff return to school after winter break.

The health committee will recommend any adjustments in safety measures to division leadership, and any suggested changes will be made afterwards.

Some Henrico teachers said that Monday is too late and that updates to safety measures need to be made before anyone returns to classrooms.

Leaders of the local advocacy group HCPS Back to School Safely released a statement Thursday condemning the division’s plan – or lack thereof.

“We… are concerned HCPS has not been more proactive in their response to the spread of the Omicron variant,” the statement reads. “As the positivity rate climbs above 19% in Virginia and the availability of Pediatric ICU beds declines, we should have seen expanded testing of staff and students prior to our return on Jan. 3; instead, the health committee is not addressing concerns until the date of our return.”

The local teachers union, Henrico Education Association, called for the division to provide free N95 and KN95 masks, along with COVID-19 tests for all staff members and students.

“Without these mitigation implements in place, opening on Monday would be nothing short of reckless endangerment of our staff, students, families, and broader Henrico community,” said HEA President Patrick Miller. “I also believe that the current quarantine guidelines for positive cases should be maintained.”

In the email, HCPS said that the health committee would meet Monday to review the latest guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – which shortened the recommended isolation time for people with COVID-19 to five days. The Virginia Department of Health is reviewing the new guidance and it is expected to be approved for Virginia schools shortly.

Meanwhile, the neighboring Richmond Public Schools division sent a lengthy message to families on Thursday explaining new mitigation measures.

Starting Jan. 10, RPS will launch a test-to-stay program in which close contacts test each night and, assuming they're negative, are permitted to come to school the next day.

At the end of next week, RPS will begin to test all unvaccinated staff on a weekly basis.

The Richmond school division also purchased a quarter million KN95 masks for staff and secondary students, which will be delivered early next week, according to the message from RPS Superintendent Jason Kamras.