Community Update

Esteemed Parents and Staff,

You may have heard the news that the County of San Diego may be moved from tier two (red) to the lowest tier (purple) on Tuesday, September 22nd in California’s new COVID-19 monitoring system, Blueprint for a Safer Economy. This likely change in status is a result of the average number of new COVID-19 cases rising above a rate of 7.0 per 100,000 residents.

The California Department of Health has also clarified that the new “purple” tier designation means Vista Unified and other schools and school districts in San Diego County may not be permitted to open our campuses for in-person instruction until the County has returned to the red tier and been in the red tier for two weeks (October 27th at the earliest). There is an informative article in the San Diego Union-Tribune that outlines this new information.

The California Department of Public Health has also authorized the County of San Diego to resume a process for schools to apply for reopening waivers. We are exploring the new waiver option in order to resume in-person instruction for our elementary campuses (TK-5) on October 20, 2020. All of the supplemental programs that Vista Unified has already started will be allowed to continue uninterrupted: Special Education, Dual Language, First Grade, English Learner, Foster Youth, and Homeless Youth.

We understand how disappointing this is for our students, families, teachers, and staff, who have been working diligently to create and implement plans to safely reopen our campuses. We know you have been planning for this return and that the new restriction on reopening may have a ripple effect on your jobs, child care arrangements, and more. We are closely monitoring the situation and will continue to work with local public health officials as we move forward.

We will share updates as more details become available. You can also find the most current information on our district’s reopening plans: www.vistausd.org/schoolreopening.

While this news is frustrating, we appreciate your patience, flexibility, and understanding as we adjust to these ever-changing conditions.

Sincerely,

Matt Doyle, Ed.D.

Superintendent of Schools

Vista Unified School District

Email: webmaster@vistausd.org
Website: vistausd.org
Location: 1234 Arcadia Avenue, Vista, CA, USA
Phone: (760) 726-2170
Twitter: @VistaBlueprint