Social distancing rules to change for schools in areas with low COVID-19 transmission rates

Students in k-12 will no longer have to maintain six feet of social distancing if they are located in communities with low or moderate transmission rates of COVID-19, according to updated recommendations and guidance, announced this week by state's Department of Health and the Department of Education, set to take effect April 5. The updates bring the state into alignment with current guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention .

In the elementary school setting, students should be at least three feet apart, a distance which is also allowed at the middle and high school level provided that the school's local county records low community transmission. In substantial counties, students in the upper grades should remain at the current six feet apart, if cohorting is not possible.

Dr. Wendy Braund, the Department of Health's COVID Response Director, detailed other areas where six feet of social distancing must be maintained. These include between adults, such as teachers and staff, in the building, and between adults and students. The six-foot distance is also recommended when masks can't be worn, such as when eating, and during activities where increased exhalation occurs, such as singing, shouting, sports or other physical activities. Braund added that these activities should be moved outdoors or to a large, well-ventilated space. Six-feet should also be maintained in common areas such as school lobbies and auditoriums.

"In addition to these update to our guidance, we also worked to release updated guidance on how schools should handle confirmed cases of COVID-19 in schools," Braund said.

"The recommendations consider the amount of community transmission in each county, the number of cases among students and staff in each school building during the past 14 days and the size of the school building," she added.

As the updated guidance relates to school closures, Braund said that in some instances, it is recommended that in-person learning may be suspended for one to two days instead of the previous three to seven days. For schools which had been required to close for 14 days, that amount of time may now be reduced to five days.

"These closures will have a shorter timeframe, still allow for necessary cleaning and for public health staff to direct close contacts into quarantine," she said.

"It is essential for us to remember that if cases are at a level that requires the building to close, the school must suspend all in-person instruction and extracurriculars, including school sports, in that building. This allows the public health staff the necessary time to complete case investigations and contact tracing and to provide the school with public health advice," Braund stated.

"We recognize the importance of in-person instruction and hope that this step, along with updates to our recommendations…will foster greater flexibility for school communities as they serve students each day," said Matthew Stem, Deputy Secretary for the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education at the state's department of education, who joined Braund at the media briefing.

Pivoting to the Wolf Administration's effort to vaccinate school staffs across the state, Braund urged all teachers to get vaccinated, touting it as the "path to a new tomorrow."

According to information from the state, the administration is ahead of schedule and nearly finished with a special initiative to provide teachers and school staff with the opportunity to voluntarily get the Johnson & Johnson single-dose vaccine. The state partnered with 28 intermediate units to operate vaccine clinics for school districts.

"We want you to be vaccinated as soon as possible. The importance of having kids in school, highlights the need for all Pennsylvanians to get vaccinated as soon as they are eligible," she said.

Braund noted that there has been a slight increase in COVID-19 cases across the state including an increasing number of variant cases.

"Everyone must continue to vigilant," she stressed.

The Department of Health also announced updated guidance on summer camps, although Braund noted that it is mostly unchanged from what was issued last July. Information on that guidance can be found on the Department of Health's website.