VVSD Pauses On-Site Learning For Special Needs Students

BOLINGBROOK, IL — The Valley View School District has decided to pause on-site learning for all students, including those in special programs or targeted groups starting Nov. 16, Superintendent Rachel Kinder announced Friday.

The current plan is a deviation from last week's announcement when she said that students in special programs, targeted groups of students, and STEP students who have already returned will continue to attend in-person.

This extended period of full-remote learning will continue until after the winter break when the district plan on implementing a phased return on-site, dependent on the level of community transmission at that time. The updated tentative timeline can be accessed here.

"Region 7, Will County, and immediate community zip code COVID-19 positive cases remain at a
substantial level and continue to surge. With the projected spikes in transmission and positivity over the next month, this decision is being made to support mitigation efforts in our community and most importantly the health and safety of our students, staff and families," Kinder said.

She said that despite the district's best efforts to mitigate risk and implement safety protocols within, staff members and students are being impacted by exposure and transmission at home and in the community which causes a great impact in the schools.

"We continue to have an increasing number of reported positive cases as well as a substantial number of individuals in quarantine," Kinder said. "We understand that prolonging remote learning will bring continued challenges for our learners and families, but we are hopeful that we can work together as a community to create conditions that will soon allow us to bring our students back to school and once we return, remain on-site for the remainder of the school year."

Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced Monday that state officials will impose Tier 2 mitigations on Region 7 (Will and Kankakee counties) as the region is seeing a test positivity rate that remains above 8 percent and continues to rise after more than 14 days under Tier 1 mitigations.

As of Thursday, 102 staff members and 103 students in the district have tested positive for the virus since the beginning of the school year.