SD23 planning for Omicron, but vaccination remains key

The superintendent of SD23 said schools are safe places to learn and the district proved that even before vaccines became available.

Speaking to the one-week delay in starting the winter term - now set for Jan.10 - because of the rapid spread of the Omicron variant, Kevin Kaardal told Kelowna10 planning has already started to further boost measures to prevent crowding and to keep students socially distant.

Vaccine status for staff

However, vaccinations remain the priority.

“The first thing I will always say about making schools safe is for every eligible person: child, student, or staff, to get their vaccinations… that would be absolutely fantastic,” he said.

It remains to be determined what, if anything, the local school board will do about teachers and staff who have decided not to get vaccinated. A vaccine mandate is in place for B.C.’s public service and health care system, but none exist for any of the province's school districts.

The Central Okanagan School board has required staff to report their vaccination status in January, although Kaardal said the deadline for that to happen was an internal matter and not public.

“I have a sense, but I don’t have accurate numbers, that we have a high [rate of] vaccinated staff… around the 80 per cent mark or better,” he explained, noting once the board has those statistics, it will have decisions to make around a possible vaccine mandate or mandated testing.

Preparing for extensive absenteeism

Absenteeism is another major element the district needs to plan for, given the inevitability that a number of teachers may be away as more and more people are infected with the virus.

But Kaardal said they have experience in dealing with various scenarios, having shifted from in-class learning to online because of classroom outbreaks or even the need to close an entire school.

“It depends on how long a period of time it would be if we were asked by Interior Health to close a school, or if, because we don’t have enough staff, we have to declare a functional closure for a period of time until we have staff back,” he said, noting he expects the coming weeks be a very fluid.

Some of the strategies that prevent crowding during class transition times include holding school gatherings like assemblies virtually and limiting visitors who offer support activities.

In a media release, SD23 said district staff will return to school on January 4 to 7 as scheduled, to prepare for the implementation of the enhanced safety measures.

During this period, school bus transportation services will continue to operate, and schools will be available to provide care and programming for K-12 students with additional support needs, and students under 12 years of age who are children of essential workers.