Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts is showing his support for getting students back in the classroom this Fall.
Monday morning, Ricketts and Education Commissioner Matthew Blomstedt each shared reasons supporting the re-opening of schools.
“It’s really important we get kids back in classrooms,” Ricketts said. Adding that some kids learn well in remote environments, but some do not. Socialization as well as physical, mental, and behavioral health, and even nutrition are all important reasons to get children back to school is also important for them, Ricketts said.
The Governor quoted an update he said CDC Director Dr. Robert Redfield made last week, stating: “But there has been another cost, particularly in high schools. We’re seeing sadly far greater suicides now than we are deaths from COVID. We are seeing far greater deaths from drug overdose that are above excess that we had as background than we are seeing from the deaths from COVID.”
Ricketts says parents of students with individual needs or concerns need to work with their principals and superintendents to make sure they use the best option for their family.
Nebraska Education Commissioner Matthew Blomstedt says quality of education, flexibility, and safety are key as schools and districts work toward reopening.
Blomstedt says analyzing risk and being able to adjust to circumstances as they come up is also important. Risk dials and phases used statewide have been helpful in quick communication about spread, he said. Blomstedt added that it’s also important for schools to work with local health officials to tailor their protocols and communicate to their staff, communities, parents, and students the plan and changes needed for reopening.
“It takes behavior change, actually, to re-enter this school year — that’s something we’ve not experienced before,” Blomstedt said. “And opening schools right now relies on individual behaviors as much as it does on our collective behaviors.” Schools will also need to review and communicate and adjust as needed, he said.
As of Monday, 40% of hospital beds are available across the state; 41% of ICU beds are available; and 83% of ventilators are available, he said.
Ricketts also encouraged Nebraskans to continue signing up for Test Nebraska, and noted that anyone who wants a COVID-19 test can get one through those assessments. The governor suggested that a good time to get tested is ahead of a visit to see grandparents.
A new testing site was set up at Oak View Mall in Omaha; and at Gateway Mall in Lincoln, with 500 slots available Monday-Saturday, he said. In addition, the Crossroads Mall site in Omaha will increase to 1,600 testing timeslots each day, with the other two mall sites looking to ramp up to the same capacity as well.
Test Nebraska recently set a new single-day swabbing record with 3,791 swabbed for COVID-19 tests in one day, Ricketts said.