CASB Serving You!

PROFESSIONAL LEARNING

• CASB members can access recorded webinars on our website. The most current ones are:"What You Need to Know About the Mill Levy Correction," “Policy Governance New School Year Checklist,” and “COVID-19 in Children: Colorado Situation Update.” The newest podcast is "Onboarding New Board Members Part I".
• CASB Regional Meetings are now underway! Don’t miss this great opportunity to connect with your peers in person this fall. In addition, any member can register for the Virtual Regional Meeting on September 29.

CASB Serving You!

PROFESSIONAL LEARNING

• CASB Regional Meetings are now underway! Don’t miss this great opportunity to connect with your peers in person this fall. In addition, any member can register for the Virtual Regional Meeting on September 29.

Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights Opens Investigations in Five States Regarding Prohibitions of Universal Indoor Masking

The U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) opened directed investigations in five states exploring whether statewide prohibitions on universal indoor masking discriminate against students with disabilities who are at a heightened risk for severe illness from COVID-19 by preventing them from safely accessing in-person education. OCR sent letters today to the chief state school officers of Iowa, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Utah, outlining how prohibitions of universal indoor masking prevent school districts from implementing health and safety policies that they determine are necessary to protect students from exposure to COVID-19, including those with underlying medical conditions related to their disability.

U.S. Department of Education Approves Five More State ARP Plans

The American Rescue Plan (ARP) authorized $122 billion in additional pandemic aid funding to K-12 schools this past spring. Since then, the U.S. Department of Education distributed two-thirds of this funding to states via a formula detailed in the legislation. However, the department held back the remaining third of these funds until states and territories submitted plans detailing how they would make use of these resources to support students as they recover from the impact of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The department approved five more of these plans and disbursed the additional funds to those states. States receiving recent approval include Alaska, Connecticut, Illinois, Louisiana, and Minnesota.

New Resource from NSBA’s Center for Safe Schools

As we emerge from a global pandemic, teachers, administrators, parents, and students are reeling from a year of virtual school, public health emergencies, civil unrest, increasing violence, social isolation, and family trauma. As schools return to in-person instruction, we must not lose sight of the foundational elements of school safety while also preparing for the new challenges this past year has presented. The initiatives and strategies discussed in "Returning to School Safely: School Safety Considerations for the 2021-2022 School Year" will assist schools in recovering from the trauma of the past and planning for a more successful future.

Using ARP Funds to Address Lost Instructional Time for Students

The U.S. Department of Education has published a new resource titled “Strategies for Using American Rescue Plan Funding to Address the Impact of Lost Instructional Time.” This guide to help school districts meet the needs of students who have been impacted by learning loss includes information about staffing solutions, social-emotional learning, parental engagement, home visits, assessments, and related areas. The guide also includes resources to help students with disabilities. Through ARP ESSER funding, districts are to utilize a portion of funds to (1) address the academic impact of lost instructional time through the implementation of evidence-based interventions; (2) ensure that the interventions implemented respond to students’ social-emotional, mental health, and academic needs; and (3) address the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on students from low-income backgrounds, students of color, students with disabilities, multilingual learners, migratory students, students experiencing homelessness, and children and youth in foster care.

CASB Serving You!

PROFESSIONAL LEARNING

• All school board presidents are invited to join the next Board Presidents Cafe on Thursday, September 16, at 11:30 a.m. Registration is free.
• In case you missed the webinar — COVID-19 in Children: Colorado Situation Update on 8/31/21 — CASB members can access the video on this member-only page. Several resource documents are also posted on our public page: COVID-19 in Children Update; CDPHE Update; Literature Review on Masking in Schools.
• CASB Regional Meetings are now underway! Don’t miss this great opportunity to connect with your peers in person this fall. In addition, any member can register for the Virtual Regional Meeting on September 29.

COVID-19 in Children: Colorado Situation Update

If you were not able to join the webinar, we have the following resources available:

COVID-19 in Children Update

CDPHE Update

Literature Review on Masking in Schools

Additional COVID-19 Vaccine and Mask Resources

We are seeing patients with respiratory illnesses – including COVID – as well as behavioral health needs that are resulting in significant increase in volumes at our hospitals much earlier in the year than usual. We anticipate those numbers will increase with the start of school as more respiratory viruses circulate.

CASB Serving You!

PROFESSIONAL LEARNING

• In case you missed the webinar — COVID-19 in Children: Colorado Situation Update on 8/31/21 — CASB members can access the video on this member-only page. Several resource documents are also posted on our public page: COVID-19 in Children Update; CDPHE Update; Literature Review on Masking in Schools.
• CASB Regional Meetings are now underway! Don’t miss this great opportunity to connect with your peers in person this fall. In addition, any member can register for the Virtual Regional Meeting on September 29.

COVID-19 Vaccine and Mask Resources


Photo: Atoms on Unsplash

HealthyChildren.org:

• Safe Schools During the COVID-19 Pandemic
• Mask Mythbusters: Common Questions about Kids and Masks
• Do Masks Delay Speech and Language Development
• The Science Behind COVID-19 Vaccines: Parent FAQs
• Long-Haul COVID-19 in Children and Teens

Children's Hospital Colorado:

• Children’s Hospital Colorado Encourages Masking in School Settings
• Q&A: Back to School in Year Two of the COVID Pandemic (mental health impact)
• Masks for Kids: What You Need to Know About Face Coverings
• Masking in Schools: Literature Review

More:

• IHME: COVID-19 Results Briefing Colorado
• JAMA: Assessment of Respiratory Function in Infants and Young Children Wearing Face Masks During the COVID-19 Pandemic
• JAMA: Notice of Retraction. Experimental Assessment of Carbon Dioxide Content in Inhaled Air With or Without Face Masks in Healthy Children: A Randomized Clinical Trial
• CDPHE: Vaccine Information for Clinicians and Public Health Professionals
• CDPHE: Colorado Vaccination Data

COVID-19 in Children: Colorado Situation Update
Webinar on Tuesday, August 31, at 12:00pm

We are seeing patients with respiratory illnesses – including COVID – as well as behavioral health needs that are resulting in significant increase in volumes at our hospitals much earlier in the year than usual. We anticipate those numbers will increase with the start of school as more respiratory viruses circulate.

Children's hospitals across the country are already seeing increased volumes and are facing mounting challenges as four factors converge, which makes taking preventative measures now so important: the increased transmissibility of the delta variant, an early start to respiratory season, the pediatric mental health crisis, and the shortage of front-line healthcare workers.

CASB Serving You!

PROFESSIONAL LEARNING

• CASB Regional Meetings are now underway! Don’t miss this great opportunity to connect with your peers in person this fall:

Seeking Local School Board Member Representation: Apply to Join the Committee of Practitioners (CoP) by September 30, 2021

The Committee of Practitioners (CoP) is a critical stakeholder group for the Federal Programs Unit at the Colorado Department of Education (CDE).  The primary purpose of the CoP is to advise CDE in the implementation of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), reauthorized as the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). The purpose of ESSA is to is to help all students in the state to reach academic proficiency, with particular focus on historically underserved students. Topics include accountability, grants management, and technical support to the field. The CoP plays a crucial role in elevating issues across the Colorado and ensuring strong communication between CDE and the K-12 education community.

Letter from CASB representative on CHSAA Board of Directors

Hello Fellow Board Members,

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Contact:
Kati Elliott
KEH Communications
410-975-9638
[email protected]                            

Colorado General Assembly Behavioral Health Transformational Task Force Survey due 9/1/2021

The Colorado General Assembly Behavioral Health Transformational Task Force and corresponding Subpanel are conducting a survey. We would like to get broad feedback from stakeholders across Colorado on what investments and policy changes need to be made to transform the behavioral health system in Colorado, inclusive of both mental health and substance use. 

Our state has a historic opportunity to make strategic transformational investments to improve access to care, improve transparency and accountability, and end discrimination. The state has set aside $450 million dollars for one-time investments in behavioral health for use by December 31, 2026.  Please review the documents posted on the Behavioral Health Transformational Task Force webpage. Although Colorado has made some progress in addressing what is needed to improve the behavioral health system through legislative changes and with state and federal funds, there are still many gaps in services and specific populations of people are disproportionately impacted by lack of access to care. For additional information on recent assessments of these gaps, please review existing reports and recommendations.