Philly plans to let some kids return to schools in February | Coronavirus Newsletter

TL;DR: About 9,000 prekindergarten through second-grade students in Philadelphia public schools are expected to come back to classrooms next month. A Philly private school got COVID-19 vaccines for its teachers but hours later, its clinic was canceled. Before getting nixed, word had trickled out to public school teachers, who questioned how a private school was able to get doses while they had been told to wait at least a month.

— Kelly O’Shea (@kelloshea, health@inquirer.com)

🛑 Philadelphia City Council members are demanding answers from city officials as questions build over their soured partnership with Philly Fighting COVID, a self-described “group of college kids” responsible until this week for managing the city’s largest coronavirus mass vaccination site.

💉 For New Jerseyans who need help making appointments to get second doses of the coronavirus vaccine, health commissioner Judith Persichilli outlined several solutions including the state’s hotline.

🦠 A 30-year-old bartender in Montgomery County has been diagnosed with the highly transmissible strain of the coronavirus first identified in the United Kingdom, county officials said.

😷 SEPTA launched its latest COVID-19 mitigation measure on Wednesday, called Mask Force Philly, an effort to boost face-covering compliance on its system.

💰 Pennsylvania’s Senate approved legislation to distribute just more than $900 million to aid schools and hospitality-related businesses hit hard by the coronavirus, as well as people struggling to pay rent. The bill still requires approval from the state House of Representatives and Gov. Tom Wolf.

📰 What’s going on in your county or neighborhood? We organized recent coverage of the coronavirus pandemic by local counties and Philly neighborhoods mentioned in the stories to make it easier for you to find the info you care about.

📈The coronavirus has swept across the Philadelphia region and cases continue to mount. The Inquirer and Spotlight PA are compiling geographic data on tests conducted, cases confirmed, and deaths caused by the virus. Track the spread here.

About 9,000 prekindergarten through second-grade students in Philadelphia public schools can come back to classrooms two days a week beginning Feb. 22, Superintendent William R. Hite Jr. said Wednesday. Their teachers are expected to report Feb. 8. Many of Philadelphia’s students are low-income, have special needs, are English language learners or vulnerable in other ways, and the pandemic has hit them especially hard, meaning a safe return to school is imperative, Hite said. The return only applies to students whose families opted for in-person learning in the fall, when the district intended to return kids to buildings in late November.

It took hustle, but Heather Orman-Lubell, medical consultant at the Philadelphia private school Springside Chestnut Hill Academy, was thrilled to secure hundreds of COVID-19 vaccine doses for teachers and staff through a Montgomery County pharmacy. Hours later, state health officials shut down the plan, citing rules about vaccine eligibility. Before getting nixed, word of SCH Academy’s plan had trickled out to public school teachers, who questioned how a private school was able to get doses while they had been told to expect to wait at least a month. Shifting priorities and confusing messages over how schools are supposed to obtain doses are setting off a frantic search for solutions, as well as worries about equitable treatment for all.

A year ago, the job of activities directors at nursing homes and assisted living facilities was to get people out of their rooms. Almost overnight last March, Rachel Kaufman, “escapades producer” at Brandywine Living at Dresher Estates, became a key player in the struggle to keep residents safe, and also happy. She visited residents’ rooms with carts loaded with things to do. She wore silly costumes and dispensed cocktails. Read more about how she kept the fun alive at a Montgomery County personal care facility.

🦆 Take your cooking game up a notch with these six duck recipes from Philly chefs.

👨🏾 Philly’s Acori Honzo couldn’t find figurines of Black folks, so he started sculpting them himself.

🧠 How three Philly groups are raising mental-health awareness in immigrant communities.

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