LONG BEACH PENINSULA — The Ocean Beach School District, along with several north county school districts, closed down in-person learning beginning this week after a surge in cases throughout Pacific County.

Along with OBSD, the Raymond, South Bend and Willapa Valley School Districts announced last week that they will transition back to a remote-only learning model for the time being. OBSD and South Bend announced that the earliest they may return to some form of in-person learning is Jan. 11.

The Naselle Grays River Valley School District had been learning remotely since Nov. 16 due to positive covid-19 cases in several staff members at its K-12 school, as first detailed in last week’s issue of the Observer. In a Nov. 24 letter to parents, obtained after the Observer’s print deadline, the district said the earliest it might return to in-person instruction is Jan. 11. 

The districts opted to return to remote learning following a recommendation from the Pacific County Health and Human Services Department, as well as state recommendations. Pacific County’s case rate is currently more than 800 cases per 100,000 people over a two-week rolling average, putting it well into the high-risk category when it comes to schools holding in-person instruction.

In a letter to families last week, OBSD said that some students will still receive on-campus services in order to meet targeted individual needs. Additional protocols will be enacted for these in-person interactions, the district said, with families of students being offered these services expected to be contacted this week.

“We know that online learning is not an easy mode of learning for many students, and for some students, it does not work at all,” WVSD Superintendent Nancy Morris said. “Teachers struggle during distance learning to try to reach and support all students adequately due to the limitations of online platforms and limitations of our region’s lack of reliable internet connectivity.”

“We know that returning to remote learning is not ideal for anyone and that this presents a huge challenge to parents, students, and school staff,” SBSD Superintendent Jon Tienhaara stated via his blog. “We are doing our very best to provide the best education and services possible while remaining in compliance with the recent health guidelines. Our goal is to return to in-person (hybrid) learning as soon as we can safely do so.”

According to OBSD Superintendent Amy Huntley, there was one Ocean Beach class in quarantine as of Nov. 18 due to a previous positive covid-19 case. At that time, Huntley said the most recent coronavirus cases had a “minimal impact” on the district, but emphasized that the situation is fluid and could change at any moment.

—Reporting by Brandon Cline and Jeff Clemens