At their Aug. 18 meeting, the ICCSD school board discussed safety measures for their hybrid learning plan, and approved the district’s plans to join a lawsuit against Governor Reynolds’ previous proclamation concerning required in-person education. 

District-wide plans for safety in the hybrid model include hand sanitizing upon entering and exiting a room, not allowing students to use hallway lockers, closure of communal spaces such as the library or cafeteria for individual use, and the required use of masks by all students and staff. The district also plans to temperature screen staff upon entry into district buildings and supply various forms of personal protective equipment (PPE) such as two cloth masks per staff member and student, face shields for all staff, hand sanitizer, cleaning supplies and gloves. Students enrolled in music and performing arts classes will also be supplied with nylon face coverings they can wear while performing.

As for secondary school specific guidelines, students are not allowed to arrive before 8:35 a.m. and must head straight to their first period class upon arrival. During breakfast and lunch, students must socially distance as best they can with only 50% or less capacity per table. Other eating-related safety measures include an option to eat in the classroom, a new touchless payment process, and sanitation of surfaces between each group.

There will also be no open campus or open periods, meaning students may not leave school at any time besides dismissal. Those with open periods will be assigned a study hall. There will also be one-way hallways and guides of tape on the floor to lead students in the right direction, as well as remind them of the six feet distance that should be between each student. 

When leaving the building, students must either head directly home or go straight to their extracurricular. Currently, the district plans to host athletics and clubs, but more information will be distributed on the subjects in next week’s meeting at 5 p.m.

The school board also released plans to join a lawsuit with the Iowa State Education Association, moving to sue the state regarding Governor Kim Reynolds’ proclamation, in which she stated schools must have 50% of their students learn in-person at a time. Reynolds later threatened to punish administrators for defying her order, and stated that students would not receive credit for classes if the proclamation was not followed. 

The board felt that the proclamation and Reynolds’ later statements infringed on the rights of local government. 

“[The proclamation] did not feel like it was offered in good faith. It felt like it was taking our legal authority away, and the manner in which it was proposed to enforce these new directions [was] punitive, and I would even say retaliatory,” said ICCSD school board member Janet Godwin.