ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – On Monday the Orange County School Board will have an emergency meeting to discuss recommendations made by the district’s new Medical Advisory Committee regarding the reopening of schools. The meeting called just days before in-person instruction begins in Orange County on Aug. 21.
The Medical Advisory Committee sending a formal recommendation to the school district late Friday afternoon, after a two-hour meeting Friday morning.
“What we are wanting to recommend to the board today is a significant decision affecting the lives of hundreds of thousands of students and their families,” said Dr. Vincent Hsu, from AdventHealth.
During the committee meeting, the group of doctors, nurses, and hospital leaders agreed to recommend face-to-face learning starting on Aug. 21 is reasonable, with caveats.
Dr. Akinyemi Ajayi sits in on the committee and spoke to News 6 after Friday's meeting.
“There is no doubt if you were listening, that some of us don’t feel like that is necessarily the best thing to do,” Dr. Ajayi said. “Also realize that we are at a point now that we are just a week from school.”
Here are the recommendations regarding reopening:
- Allow for school reopenings but with staggered start dates
- Reopen only elementary schools scheduled on Aug. 21
- Reopen middle, high schools at a later date, possibly one week later depending on what is feasible for the district
Dr. Ajayi explains why he believes a staggered start date could work.
"For children below 5-6 age, they do not transmit the virus as easily, for a number of reasons," Dr. Ajayi said. "One, they do not have the lung capacity, two if they are breathing they do not generate large plumes and they are also shorter, much closer to the ground."
He adds that changes when a child is 9 or 10, their transmission is nearly the same as an adult he said.
"Let's bring in the people who are least likely to spread this virus first," said Dr. Ajayi "Let's figure out how the systems we think we have put in place actually work and then lets add in more classes as we go along."
However, Dr. Jenkins reminded the committee the district is bound by the state’s emergency order to reopen schools before Aug. 31.
“It really does go back to the state’s emergency order,” which Superintendent Dr. Barbara Jenkins reminded the board the district has to reopen schools by the end of August. “If we try to have high schoolers go in September, our potential hold back from the state is in the $68 million dollar mark.”
Other recommendations from the Medical Advisory Committee Friday include requiring masks to be worn at all times with little to no exceptions, require more contact tracing and rapid testing in schools and more training for teachers and staff on how to properly wear PPE.
"I was very strong and insistent that we can't compromise on our opinions for any reason, " Dr. Ajayi said. "We have to provide the best advice that we can and the board will do what it can do."
Dr. Jenkins saying ultimately the school board will determine to take up these recommendations or not. The emergency school board meeting is scheduled for Monday.