Fresno-area schools find ways around California’s COVID-19 watch list. Can they do that?

As several private schools open up their campuses under the guise of day camps, local health departments have found their hands tied, even though schools on the state’s coronavirus watchlist have been ordered to remain closed.

Central Valley Christian Schools, a K-12 school in Visalia, said it would begin on Sept. 8 operating as a day camp, welcoming students in lower grades for half-day sessions, and high school students for a day to work in large or outdoor spaces.

The Tulare County Health Department said Friday that it is aware of local schools choosing to operate as day camps “in providing instruction to children on-site under the guidelines provided by the California Department of Public Health.”

Day camps are allowed in California, and the state has released guidelines that administrators should follow to keep everyone safe.

“Although, under current guidance (day camps are) allowed in the State of California, Tulare County Public Health does not have any regulatory authority or oversight of Day Camps, and therefore cannot approve or deny a school from operating as such,” spokesperson Carrie Monteiro said.

Because of high case rates of COVID-19, public health officers are discouraging “any effort to congregate children from multiple households as it poses a significant spread of COVID-19,” Monteiro said.

“We are in communications with local school officials and encouraging the practice of distance learning as much as possible until COVID-19 case rates decline. Ensuring the health and safety of children, teachers, staff, and all of their families is our top priority.”

Fresno County health officials said Friday they are waiting for clarification from the state to move forward. Dr. Rais Vohra, the county’s interim health officer, said checking on schools requires a lot of “information gathering,” to find out if the campus is actually offering day camp activities.

“We want to make sure that this isn’t school because school is not allowed from the state mandate,” he said. “Beyond that, I’m going to be signing a local order. And I’m working with the county counsel about that — for all schools to be closed until it’s time to grant waivers and allow them to reopen.”

Vohra said waivers for elementary schools to reopen could be granted when there are fewer than 200 COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people. Fresno County is at about 300, he said.

Day cares and day camps

Opening as a day camp or daycare is a tactic several other private schools in the state are using, too. In Modesto, at Big Valley Christian, students were completing online work inside classrooms with no teacher present.

At Capital Christian High School in Sacramento, students were spaced out in a classroom with a teacher. The Sacramento public health department said attempting to reclassify students already past kindergarten as being in daycare is “improper.”

In Fresno County, public health officials filed an injunction with Fresno County Superior Court on Thursday to try and close Immanuel Schools, another private, faith-based K-12 campus that opened on Aug. 13. A hearing is set for Tuesday.

It isn’t clear if Immanuel opened its doors as a day camp.

County officials noted the private school draws students from various communities outside of Reedley and said there was a “critical” need to “avoid so-called super-spreader events that can occur at congregant settings such as schools.”

Also in Tulare County, Outside Creek Elementary School has welcomed its students back to class. The school is less than 13 miles away from Central Valley Christian and has about 90 students.

Outside Creek was the last school in California to stay open in March when schools started to shut down to slow the spread of COVID-19. It is not clear if Outside Creek was operating under a day camp model.

Central Valley Christian

When Central Valley Christian opens, it will follow a hybrid model that allows for in-person and distance learning, Superintendent Larry Baker said in a news release on Thursday.

Students will learn from home on Mondays, while cohorts of 13 or fewer will attend school at different times and days during the rest of the week.

The elementary and middle school will have a morning and afternoon session with half of each grade level attending one session a day, according to the school. High schoolers will come to campus either Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday and work outdoors or in large spaces.

Masks or face shields and social distancing is required, according to the school, and students and staff will have their temperature taken before entering campus.

“We are social beings and crave the interaction that in-person school provides,” Baker said in the statement. “This Day Camp model provides the in-person contact we all want. At the same time, by keeping cohorts small, and implementing health precautions like masks and distancing, (the plan) shows respect and care for the larger community in which we live.”

The school’s announcement comes as school officials await a waiver to be approved by the Tulare County Health Department that allows elementary schools to open if they can prove they can do so safely.

It is unclear how CVC’s high school or middle school could operate, even if the waiver was granted.

But the health department has previously said it is not granting any waivers, as coronavirus cases steadily continue in the region.

Baker said CVC would operate as a day camp, under the guidance of the California Department of Health’s Guidance on Operating Day Camps. Families can still opt for distance learning under CVC’s opening plan.

The Education Lab is a local journalism initiative that highlights education issues critical to the advancement of the San Joaquin Valley. It is funded by donors. Read more from The Bee’s Education Lab here.

This story was originally published August 23, 2020 at 5:00 AM.