Des Plaines District 62 switching to remote learning after Thanksgiving break

Citing the rising number of COVID-19 cases in the suburbs, Des Plaines Elementary District 62 will switch from in-person to remote learning after Thanksgiving break, school officials announced Tuesday.

“During this ‘adaptive pause' into full remote learning for all our students, we will continue to follow the data closely; as a community, our metrics must start trending in a positive direction before we will consider returning to in-person learning,” Superintendent Paul E. Hertel wrote in a letter to parents and staff.

The pivot to remote learning will begin Monday, Nov. 30, Hertel wrote. The district will re-evaluate the decision Dec. 14, with a possible return to in-person learning on Tuesday, Jan. 19 in mind.

The COVID-19 figures that led to the decision, released last week by the Illinois Department of Public Health, show that several key public health metrics anchoring the district's return-to-school plan are now in the “substantial community transmission” level, officials said. They include new cases per 100,000 people, positivity rate, and total new cases.

The district also cited staffing challenges, as a large number of employees are in quarantine, making it difficult to conduct day-to-day operations.

“This decision to enter into an adaptive pause was not made lightly,” Hertel wrote. “I fully understand the importance of having in-person learning for students. Unfortunately, the cases of COVID in suburban Cook County and our community of Des Plaines continue to climb.”