BRENHAM SCHOOL BOARD HEARS COVID-19 UPDATE FROM LOCAL HEALTH, EMERGENCY OFFICIALS
Several local health and emergency officials spoke Monday night with the Brenham School Board about ongoing COVID-19 developments.
Washington County’s health authority Dr. William Loesch, EMS Director Kevin Deramus, and Emergency Management Coordinator Bryan Ruemke all gave updates to the board on what is known about the virus and what is being done to stop its potential spread.
Dr. Loesch said this situation continues to rapidly change, with his team learning new things about the virus hourly. He said he believes Brenham ISD was “very right” to shut the schools down when they did, but thinks the closures may end up lasting longer than just one week.
Board President Natalie Lange asked Dr. Loesch how prepared the county is for community spread of the virus, to which he replied “I think we’re prepared as we can be for something like this”. He said there’s a lot of panic going around, but what is needed right now is logic and calm. He said this is a scary virus that can cause some serious illness, but the vast majority of patients are going to feel like they have the common cold.
Dr. Loesch said he believes his team has done about as much preparation as it can with the resources it has, with resources being limited for everyone. Deramus echoed that statement, saying EMS has worked closely with Baylor Scott and White and is preparing for all possibilities. He said, in this situation, it’s a case of “plan for the worst, hope for the best”.
Dr. Loesch reiterated the importance of educating parents about making sure children know that just because they are off from school, it is not a holiday. He said this is a time to “go home, stay home”, unless people absolutely need to be somewhere.
Dr. Loesch said, while there are still no confirmed cases in Washington County, this is one of those diseases people could spread before they know they have it. He said this will hit the Brenham community whether people like it or not, saying it’s not a matter of if, but when.
He said, however, life cannot proceed normally, as the virus would “take over” and “completely overwhelm” local medical systems. By limiting the spread of people, he said the spread of the virus through the community is very much slowed down. He said a vaccine is still in the works, but it will likely be a year or two before it is deployed.
Lange asked Deramus how many ventilators there are in the hospital system in Brenham, to which he said about 18 total. He said just like most schools are not built for a 10 percent increase in students instantaneously, most hospitals are not meant to take on an extra 5 percent in patients. He said that kind of increase would just “devastate the healthcare system”. He said, when the first case gets to Washington County, health officials will do what they can to isolate it.
Dr. Loesch said the death numbers are not the ones to focus on, but rather the number of people who need to be hospitalized. He said there is hope, but not certainty, that warmer weather will abate the situation.
When asked when the district would make a follow-up announcement about classes in the coming weeks, Superintendent Dr. Walter Jackson said the district will be thorough, but timely, when making its decision.
Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction Dr. Jamey Johnson discussed the virus’s impact on the education front, saying while the district knows that the state’s STAAR testing requirements will be waived, it has not heard about what will be done in regards to accountability ratings. She admitted that education is going to look a little different for a while, but not necessarily in a bad way.
Brenham ISD Child Nutrition Director Sandra Baxter spoke on the drive-thru lunches served at Alton Elementary School Monday. Baxter said approximately 217 hot lunches were served at the drive-thru, which as of today (Tuesday) will begin serving breakfast in addition to lunch. She said the district is exploring options to bring food out into the community to other locations.
Communications Director Jessica Johnston said a Houston field reporter and photographer from the New York Times will be coming to Alton Elementary School around 1 p.m. today to do a story on how school closures are impacting low-income families, and what school districts and communities are doing to try to fill in the gaps. She said this will be a great way to showcase Brenham ISD being “at the ready” in this situation.
Also in session, the board approved the employment of Kim Rocka as principal of Brenham Elementary School. Dr. Jackson said Rocka has 23 years of education experience, 13 of which in Brenham ISD as an assistant principal and principal at Brenham Elementary School.
The board then adjourned into executive session to discuss personnel matters. No action was taken.
Critical thinking? We are closing schools, etc, because there are scant testing supplies in every community. Wise and seasoned health officials know there are thousands of undiagnosed cases who have not self quarantined and are exposing thousands more. Limiting exposure right now is our only defense until we can catch up with some of the other advanced nations who were wise enough to access testing supplies in time. Our officials can not be too cautious, I thank them for their efforts so far.
I appreciate all of the efforts being made by Brenham ISD to keep our families safe and fed. Everyone should take this time to connect with family. Spend quality time with our children.
Many of the Houston and Dallas area school districts have already postponed school until around April 10th. This probably makes sense for schools in areas where there are high population densities and cases already exist. However, let’s step back here and look a little more critically at *our* situation. Washington County has no cases of this virus, yet. Are the cases in Harris and counties surrounding Washington county increasing in an exponential manner? At this time, no, they are not. If neighboring counties start seeing exponential ramp rates of this then it makes sense to close Brenham schools. If a case shows up in Washington County then it makes sense to close Brenham schools. Neither of these have happened so far. It would be nice to see some critical thinking here instead of just jumping on a bandwagon with neighboring schools that are located in counties that are seeing cases and are also high density population areas. Let’s look at actual statistics and do what makes sense. Let’s not just “follow along” unless there is a strong argument to do so. I don’t see that argument presented, yet.
I totally disagree with you ! We are trying to stop the spread. This virus is present for 14 days prior to showing any symptoms. I do believe that Brenham will eventually claim is first victim. So “Critical Thinking” plays a very important role at this time.
I have a five year old that has respiratory issues. I don’t want her exposed! I don’t know what the outcome would be for her!
As a matter of fact, Its a relief, that YOU are NOT one our decision makers of when school should reopen !
If you are that unconcerned for our communities health as a whole, then you need to one of the more populated areas of coronavirus and remain there !
How about some common sense? There has just been one case in Bryan/College station that tested positive. It’s going to get worse before it gets better How about we do our part and help to try to stop the spread, and not what you think is right because of no found cases in Brenham. Who knows who might have this virus? No test have been done here. Be safe and protect our kids and older people. Follow what the government and CDC recommend.
You can’t base it on confirmed cases. Since testing is so far behind you have to assume that the virus is already in the community and proceed that way.
Brazos county held a briefing last night that reiterated many times they had ZERO confirmed cases, yet this morning they now have 1 CONFIRMED case. Things change quickly with this virus ?! Please remember that just because we do not have any CONFIRMED cases today does NOT mean we do not have positive cases currently in OUR community. Our loved ones, neighbors and friends are worth taking any extra precautions we can!
If we wait until the cases start increasing in exponential numbers then it’s already too late. That’s the point of these closures. We have to stay ahead of the curve.
Critical thinking is wonderful, but as educators, we know that decisions must be based on clear evidence. If we research and look at how the virus has acted in other countries, we know that being proactive is of utmost importance. BISD is not jumping on any bandwagon, they are making intelligent, thoughtful decisions based on evidence presented by committees, communities and educated professionals who have more experience with the disease than the “average citizen” in order to meet the safety needs of the students and families in Washington county.
I totally disagree with you.
The whole point of this is to STOP the spread! If our kids are sent back to school, and then someone becomes positive there is the potential that it has been spread to all our children. Like they said above some people show no signs and symptoms. They do not even realize they are passing it around, while others will show signs and symptoms. The lawyer in New York is a perfect example. If a father catches it, then gives it to his son/daughter, then they come to school and pass it to several friends or even an elderly teacher, then these people unknowingly take it home with them, there will be terrible consequences for some. Do remember that we live in a community with a vast number of elderly, and this virus is not kind to them. This is reason we are suppose to be trying to isolate ourselves and our family!
Don’t get me wrong, I do think people are overreacting with cleaning out the grocery store, but trying to “slow the curve” is reasonable. People need to remember basic hygiene, and take this time to deep clean. Wipe down anything that sits still and maybe just maybe we can get a handle on this thing.
As has already been said….we will see later if we overreacted, but better to overreact now then to take this lightly and look back later and wish we had done more sooner!
From CNN:
Infected people without symptoms might be driving the spread of coronavirus more than we realized
By Elizabeth Cohen, Senior Medical Correspondent
“…it appears that a Massachusetts coronavirus cluster with at least 82 cases was started by people who were not yet showing symptoms, and more than half a dozen studies have shown that people without symptoms are causing substantial amounts of infection.”
https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.cnn.com/cnn/2020/03/14/health/coronavirus-asymptomatic-spread/index.html
If you don’t get ahead of the game, you are behind. The coronavirus is extremely contagious. Just because there are no confirmed cases here doesn’t mean it isn’t here. The first person confirmed in Montgomery county got it when he went to the cook off for the Houston Livestock and Rodeo. I would be willing to bet he didn’t shake hands with or be around someone who was showing symptoms of the virus. He still got it. An apple a day, keeps the doctor away. I applaud our school district and city for being so proactive. Containment is the key. Do your due diligience: sing the happy birthday song while you wash your hands so that you know you are washing correctly, use hand sanitizer, practice social distancing and if you have a cough, fever, sore throat and fever, self quarantine and call your doctor. Together we will beat this and come out stronger. God bless Washington county, Brenham, Texas, America and President Donald Trump. We can do all things through Christ who strengthens us.
In response to changes with meals distributed by BISD school nutrition department…
How are families being notified of changes? Will there be two separate serving times (Breakfast & Lunch)? Is it feasible to send phone notification or remind message to identified families? Any other platforms to share in formation?
Clear and effective communication is key especially during this time.
I applaud BISD in great efforts continually beig made in arranging healthy meals for our community children while keeping everyone safe.
Thumbs up to the Community in Washington County for arranging breakfast and lunches to be handed out at Alton Elementary to the low income families in our area. One thing this area does best is drive through meals for charitable events!
Hello….Low income??…No Sir, they are providing this service to ALL BISD STUDENTS….Regardless of their families income!!