"You'll Be Safer in Schools Than Not in Schools," Says Raimondo of Planning for Fall

"You'll Be Safer in Schools Than Not in Schools," Says Raimondo of Planning for Fall

 

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Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo said Wednesday that the state would not "fall into fear mongering or politics" as it comes to reopening schools in the fall, and made the pronouncement that after planning, students will be "safer in schools" than not. 

"We are going to get our kids back to school, and safe in school, and we are going to follow the science," said Raimondo at her weekly coronavirus press briefing. 

"Don’t let anybody scare you. We’re going to do the hard work, the painstaking work of readying our schools and buses and communities," said Raimondo. "So that when we say it's time to go back to school, we will know it will be safe for you to go back to school."

"In fact, you’ll be safer in school than not being in school," said Raimondo. "We’re going to let science guide those decisions, guide us around the virus and around...the needs of our kids to be in school."

Raimondo, who in June announced that Rhode Island schools will reopen on August 31, spoke to school districts providing varying plans about what that will look like, from in-person, to online, to a hybrid approach --  but acknowledged that there have been no decisions made at this time. 

"Right now there’s a lot of worry and unanswered questions," said Raimondo. 

"It’s wrong to just say it’s safer to keep kids at home. I don’t know that’s true," said Raimondo. "Our children are suffering — nutritionally, emotionally, mental health, immunizations are down. This is an equity issue. I worry most about children who live in poverty for who distance learning [was an issue]."

"It’s way too early to throw in the towel," said Raimondo. "Right now everything’s on the table. There’s more work to be done."

Testing in Focus

Raimondo and Dr. Nicole Alexander Scott talked about the state's efforts to improve the state's turn-around time for test results. 

Last week, GoLocal reported, "No Way Kids Can Go Back With Testing Like This, Says RI Mom of 9-Year-Old Awaiting Results" -- who waited ten days for a test result. 

"We are right now trying to procure the equipment we need so we can have rapid testing at every school. We need a little bit more time," said Raimondo.

Raimondo, who had earlier in the pandemic announced a goal of 20,000 tests a day under the "new normal," has since backtracked from that approach.  

"I don’t think of it as a number — I think of it as can we have actionable data," said Raimondo.

Raimondo also announced plans to increase communication with the public in the coming weeks around schools. 

"Every Thursday at 3, the Commissioner and I will be hosting virtual forums with education stakeholders to talk just about schools on my Facebook page," said Raimondo, who said that the first forum on Thursday will include pediatricians Dr. Jim McDonald and Dr. Eilzabeth Lang. 

In addition, Raimondo said that on Fridays, a "special edition" of her office's daily email will be focused on getting back to schools