Students in the Comox Valley School District have started an online petition calling for shutdown of district schools and a shift to online learning because of the “staggering increase” in COVID-19 exposures throughout the community.
“This has drawn an increase of concern amongst the students within SD71 as several of these exposures have taken place within the district,” the petition said.
The district has had six exposures discovered at schools in the last week or so, with none before that.
Students said they are concerned about what is happening.
“We want to emphasize WE FEEL UNSAFE GOING TO SCHOOL,” the petition said. “We would appreciate the administrative staff of each high school to consider this before dismissing students’ pleas to switch online in this time of uncertainty.
“It is our request that there is an immediate indefinite shutdown of all the schools within SD71. We request that this shutdown is sustained until the exposures within the Comox Valley (and preferably all of Vancouver Island) are under control so we can safely access our right to education.”
Not enough has been done to deal with the recent increase in cases, the petition said.
“The lack of action taken to prevent an increase of cases within SD71 has highlighted their apathy towards protecting the health of their student body. Students report a lack of enforcement in terms of provincial health regulations within both elementary and high schools alike. This is unacceptable.”
The petition said students are not trying get out of assignments or exams. “This is not an academic issue. Many students are currently carrying the burden of putting their entire families at risk because our schools remain open.”
The petition had 1,382 signatures toward a goal of 1,500 by early afternoon Tuesday.
Mary Lee, the district’s manager of communications, said officials acknowledge there is a petition voicing concern about safety in schools.
“The Ministry of Education is the one, in consultation with the provincial health officer, that decides provincially on the operation schools.”
She stressed that schools are safe “and we have stringent protocols in place.”
The Ministry of Education has announced $900,000 in funding for six regional COVID-19 rapid-response teams to help schools and districts with safety plans and exposure assessments.
“As the pandemic evolves, these teams will help us respond quickly and adapt, where necessary, to ensure best practices are being consistently applied throughout the education sector,” Education Minister Jennifer Whiteside said in a statement.
The lead school district in the Island Health region is Nanaimo-Ladysmith.
