 |
THE SECRETARY OF EDUCATION |
March 24, 2022
Dear Educators and Parents[1]:
Thank you for all you have done to provide unwavering support to students over the past two years and help get students safely back to school in person, where they learn best. I am writing today with some updates and resources to aid in your efforts to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 in schools and ensure all students can safely learn in person, to the maximum extent possible. This letter addresses the needs of students with disabilities as we move into a new phase in our response to the pandemic.
Keeping all students safe in person at school[2] remains a top priority of the Biden-Harris Administration. Thanks to the unprecedented resources provided through the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARP Act) and prior relief packages, schools have resources to remain open, keep students and staff safe, and address the impact of the pandemic on student learning and mental health. Today, more than 99 percent of all schools are fully open, up from about 46 percent in early 2021.
In late February, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released an updated framework for how we understand and respond to the risks and impacts of COVID-19 in our communities. CDC’s new recommendations reflect the latest data and evolving science surrounding COVID-19, identifying COVID-19 Community Levels that account for severity of disease and the capacity of our healthcare systems to respond. We are now in a better position than ever before to fight COVID-19 – including to prevent medically significant illness, minimize the burden on our healthcare system, and protect individuals at increased risk for severe illness – including older adults, people with disabilities, people with medical conditions, and pregnant individuals – in our communities through vaccines, treatments, and layered prevention strategies. To find the COVID-19 Community Level in your community, please visit CDC’s website.
The Department recognizes the difficulties many families have experienced as they strived to balance the need to ensure their child’s physical safety and their child’s need for in-person learning. As we enter this next phase of pandemic response, we urge schools to lead with equity and inclusion to ensure all students have access to in-person learning alongside their peers. For nearly two years, educators and staff across the country have provided services and supports to students with disabilities in ways never anticipated prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Administration is committed to ensuring that students with disabilities continue to receive the services and supports they are entitled to so that they have successful educational experiences. As you know, CDC recognizes that COVID-19 poses a heightened risk of severe complications
- ↑ Parent has the meaning given in IDEA regulations at 34 C.F.R. § 300.30, which includes guardians and individuals acting in the place of a biological parent or adoptive parent (including a grandparent, stepparent or other relative) with whom the child lives, or an individual who is legally responsible for the child’s welfare.
- ↑ In addition, please refer to the Office of Head Start website for requirements specific to Head Start.
https://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/about-us/coronavirus/ohs-covid-19-updates
