Carlsbad Unified School District announces month-long school closure amid coronavirus concerns

The Carlsbad Unified School District (CUSD) announced on March 13 at 9:55 a.m. that all schools will be closed starting Monday, March 16 until April 13 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Though there is not evidence of active cases of COVID-19 in CUSD schools, the month-long district closure signals an effort to curb the spread of coronavirus, as the virus is a respiratory infection that spreads through close contact between people.

“We will remain in close contact with the San Diego County Office of Education and local public health officials throughout the duration of this closure and will provide updates to families as appropriate,” CUSD said. “We encourage you to stay informed of the situation by regularly checking updates from ​San Diego County Public Health Services​ and the ​Centers for Disease Control (CDC)​.”

To coincide with school closure, spring break has been rescheduled for the week of April 6. The California Department of Education will be providing more information on off-campus learning on Wednesday, March 18. According to Principal Dr. Bryan Brockett, a method of schooling that would allow equal access to education for all students is still being determined and can be anything from teachers assigning work online to a brief break in school work.

Additionally, various programs offered to CUSD students have adapted to this change. Programs provided by the nonprofit Carlsbad Educational Foundation (CEF), such as Kids Care, will be unavailable at this time. Likewise, for students with Individualized Education Plans (IEPs), special education services will not be received during school closure. CUSD’s plan to work with the county and surrounding school districts to make decisions has already gone smoothly, Brockett said. As CUSD continues to adapt to the spread of COVID-19, future updates on district response plans can be found on their website.

“In my lifetime and certainly in my career, this situation is really unprecedented,” Brockett said. “We’ve never seen a situation like this that has had an effect all over the world … I hope we as a community [and] as a society can make sure we’re taking care of people who need that help at this time. A lot of these preventative measures that we’re taking really are designed to help us stay ahead of the curve, hopefully stop the spread and keep our families and community healthy. If we take a calm approach to that I think we’re all better off.”