The Examiner U-46 News Feed

U-46 in-school learning delayed by positive tests

By Seth Hancock
  On the same day pre-kindergarten through second grade families in School District U-46 were receiving teacher assignments for a return to school, the district announced it would be delaying indefinitely that return.
  Those families that said they planned to return under the hybrid model received those assignments on Thursday, Oct. 22. In-person learning was expected to start for those students on Tuesday, Oct. 27.
  Later that same day, Superintendent Tony Sanders sent an email stating the delay because “two staff members in our Transportation Department were confirmed to be positive with COVID-19 within a 28-hour time period. As such, the Kane County Health Department declared an outbreak at our Shales Parkway facility and have sent home nine additional staff members to quarantine for a minimum of 14 days.”
  Sanders added: “At this time, we do not have dispatchers available to guide drivers, respond to parent calls, and ensure students can be safely transported.”
  Those select groups, like self-contained special education and transition program students, who have already returned for some in-person learning will continue in-person, Sanders stating their transportation “operate out of our second transportation facility.”
  Sanders stated he “cannot commit to a date” when the hybrid model can start for pre-k through second grade.
  The announcement left little solace to parents who chose the hybrid model for their children. Several members of the ReOpen U46 School Facebook page suggest that if an “outbreak” of just two cases shut down the district’s plans then that’s evidence not much planning occurred, and others asked why parents wouldn’t be allowed to drive their kids to school as an option.