Getting a quality education, and allowing us as parents to get back to work, where we are able to, and to make sure that we are attending as we anticipate this every year to so many other responsibilities as parents and caregivers. Today, i want to talk about what we are putting out in terms of guidance and guidelines for education in the state of california in the context of covid19. We will go through a list of specific recommendations, specific guidance as well is updating you as we do on all of the information related to Positivity Rates, hospitalization rates and icus. Lets begin with the found ocean framework lets begin with the foundational framework. It is nonnegotiable that schools must provide meaningful instruction during this pandemic, whether they are physically opened, the schools, or not. That is what i want to talk about specifically today. Our students, our teachers, staff, and certainly parents, we all prefer in class instruction for all of the obvious reasons. But only if it can be done safely. As a parent, i believe that. As someone who has a responsibility to help support education of six plus million kids in california. I have the backs of our teachers, nurses, guidance staff, principals, bus drivers, janitors, all the folks that are responsible for the caretaking, the safety, and to health of our children. We have to have their backs as well, including obviously the preciousness that is our children and the kids in our Education System, but safetys foundation amy safety will ultimately make the determination on how we go about educating our kids as we move into the fall we work our way through this pandemic. Here is the five principles that we are laying out in terms of our expectations. Here is our pandemic plan for schools in the state of california. Number one, safe in person school. Based upon local health data and i will walk through that bullet point. With new mask requirements that we are putting forth today. Some clarification and some constructive guidance on physical distancing and other adaptations we expect to see within the School Setting. We are putting out specific guidance as it relates to testing and Contact Tracing in our School System. And what we mean by. Istancelearning if we are going to have distancelearning, and we will, to make sure it is real, we will address the divide, equity, and it is rigorous distancelearning. Lets talk about number one peer using data, using the foundational data that we have laid out, county by county, all throughout the state of california. We are now putting forth canelines that say school now physically open for in Person Education when the counties have been off the monitoring lists for 14 consecutive days. If you have tuned into these daily briefings, you are very familiar with our monitoring list. I will be updating that list later today, but we are now putting forth guidelines that say based on the data, based upon the background spread, the Community Spread of the virus, that if you are not on that monitoring list, you can move forward as a county, if you choose, to physically open your campus, physically open your schools. However, schools that dont meet this requirement, they must begin the school year this fall through distance. Number two, and i will get to that in a moment number two, we are putting forth a new mask requirement. All school staff and students in third grade and above must wear masks. Students in the second grade or below, we strongly encourage Wearing Masks and face shields. I have a very young sun, dutch, mask, hehe first saw would naturally recoil. Caregivers now have face shields and he can see their humanity, so that is why we put guidance out for masks and face shields as well. Our third frame is around physical distancing. Side, physical distancing we believe that it is incumbent upon staff to maintain at least a six foot distance between each other, and a six foot distance between themselves and the students. We believe that the school day should start with symptom checks, temperature checks. We have robust expectations around hand washing stations, sanitation, deep sanitation, efforts, andtion that the schools have along the lines of the adaptations, have quarantine protocols, and we will talk more about that in a moment about these continuity and attendance plans that each school site is now responsible for putting forth. As it relates to the issue of testing, there is a requirement that we test on a rotating basis, a cohort of staff on a consistent basis. The doctor will talk a little bit about that. In turn, we are bringing to the School System, the benefit and support of the 10 plus thousand contact tracers that we have trained here in the state of california in partnership with backboneucla with the and a database that now has organized a collective. We want to turn our Contact Tracing where we think it will be very effective in a School Environment and effective in mitigating the spread in trying to understand exactly where and andthe spread had advanced allow us to isolate and quarantine cohorts, not only children, but staff as it relates to mitigating that spread further. Throughout the distancelearning, i said rigorous. Access to devices is one thing and connectivity is foundational. I will talk about the money we have put up to allow for districts to purchase new devices to get the kind to get the conductivity our students need and deserve to address this gap as it relates to the Digital Divide. We want daily, live interaction with teachers and other students. Students connecting with other students. Teachers connecting daily on an interactive frame to advance our distancelearning efforts. Remember, we had a lot of experience that came through the spring this year. We reviewed a lot of of this fits and starts related to quality, access issues, points of consideration of concern and shared those best practices. No one is going to deny that based upon the early orders to start to close school at the local level, that some of it worked more effectively in certain parts of the state than others. Clearly, we have work to do to make sure that we are doing rigorous distancelearning, but this is the predicate, the foundation, these are the expectations we have minimum expectations in terms of quality, engagement, conductivity, and access to the devices that are foundational in terms of providing for quality distancelearning. We also want to create a challenging environment, where assignments are equivalent in terms of what you would otherwise get in an in person class setting. Im not naive. Again, we stipulate in the second slide i showed, that staff, teachers, that parents prefer the socialemotional learning of in class education. That is a default. That is our bias, but under the circumstances with the spread of this virus maybe i will get to that spread in a moment as an explanation as to why we are putting out this recommendation. That we want to do our best to create some sense of equivalency constraints,ous that is distancelearning. We also want to make sure that we are always mindful of our students that are homeless, our students that are foster care, students in the system, school with english as a second language, and those with learning disabilities, those who have special needs and the like. Laid,that foundation is was laid rather with the legislature and the strong support we receive from the legislature, when we put forth the package on equity that was approved. That package includes 5. 3 billion to deal with learning lost those associated with some a the closings last year and very, very focus and intentional effort to meet the needs of those again that fall into those categories to special needs. 5. 3 billion was put in additional funding to prioritize the issue of equity. It is not just a throwaway line or a catchphrase. It is not just something we put out to promote a point of view, but we are substantively putting real resources into advancing that point of view as well. A question a lot of people are once, or begin to ask is our school is open, what happened if the spread goes into the classroom setting, or a district setting, or if the spread continues in the county unabated . This slide puts forth some criteria that we are setting forth. Again, these are brackets, and within these brackets, we will work through with the county, and all the local conditions, and recognizing the nuances and gray areas apart of the system as large as ours. Over 1000 School Districts in california, as well as the county superintendents and local districts, and cities and counties and all of the jurisdictional criteria, makes this unlike any other state in terms of size and scope challenging, but nonetheless, this is the minimum expectation to consult with Public Health officers first if a classroom cohort has to go home because there is a confirmed case. If a School Goes Home with multiple cohorts that have cases, or we stipulate 5 of the school, the local school, not the district, is positive, it would trigger criteria to consider closing, or mandating rather, the closure of that school site. However, one school does not make a district. And depending on the size and scale of your district, this could be multiple schools, or just a few schools, if they have similar cohorts cohort caseloads. We have a stipulation, mandate that it is 25 of the schools that compose a district. Have they will close within a 14 day period within that threshold. As many of you know, the department of Public Health you put out guidance to the department of health sometime ago. There is a lot of local guidance. The purpose of today is to try to lean in from a health and data perspective in terms of our expectation, public and private schools, and the state of california, expectations mandate with the flexibility that recognizes part of the states unique, each part of the states distinctive. Some counties, monitoring list. Others are not. Maybe they are not seen the outbreak. As a consequence, are able to do the in Person Education, but even those that are currently on the monitoring less, we hope and expect as we mitigate the spread of the disease, they will fall off that monitoring less, and we created the guidelines over a 14 day stabilization period to reopen those schools, and allow that as an option to local education entities with counsel with Public Health officials to make that determination as to what is best for their children and those that support our children. Remember, Public Education is absolutely about our kids, but we cannot deny the fact that we have hundreds of thousands of tolts that are responsible taking care in educating our kids as well, and their health has to be considered as well. I offer that as a parent, as someone who has reverence for our principals, teachers, janitors, bus drivers, and others, and im interested to be accountable and responsible to their health as well as the health of my children and your children and our children, our future. That is the framework we are putting out today on education. Of course, i will happily answer any questions. We have a head of the california board of education, linda, also available on the line for those of you who wish to ask her any questions. Not only head of health and , but aervices pediatrician is available for questions and we can talk more about his own personal experience with Young Children that he has as well and his expectations moving forward. First, i want to quickly run badugh what i began with learning remains i began with and that learning remains nonnegotiable wouldve neither his safety for all of our cohorts, support staff as well and children. Here are todays numbers. You have become familiar with the sevenday average, which to me is more important than the episodic rise and fall of a single day number of case counts as it relates to the total number of cases that are positive. On julyd 129,000 people 16. You will see the number. 9900 86 individuals tested positive for covid19. 8830erage at 8800 eight. You will see the Positivity Rate modestly. Ually, down the 7a Positivity Rate is lower than the 14 day Positivity Rate. Our current california Positivity Rate over a sevenday period 7. 1 . The slide you see representing 13 day period at 7. 4 . We are averaging now 124,000 tests on a daily basis. We have gone past that of 80,000. We reconstituted earlier this wek, you you heard reconstituted our Testing Task Force. I want to make this crystal clear. Our goal is to increase testing in the state of california, but do so with a different intensity of focus. But i want to see those numbers, those average daily test numbers continue to climb. They are continuing to climb. This is the largest, sevenday average number of daily tests we have ever put forth, and i will remind you, it wasnt that long ago that we were averaging 2000 tests per day and now over 124,000 test per day, and we will continue to fight to see those numbers increase, despite the external challenges. We will have to be more resourceful, and is a state, we are more than capable of figuring out how we can navigate some of those supply chain shortages, and some of the other constraints highlighted over the course of the last few weeks. 7. 4 over a 14, day period. That represents a 7. 3 increase you the 14 day period, as can see from this lie. The rate of hospitalizations, we continue to see hospitalization numbers increase in the state of california. About a 24 increase excuse increase over22 the 14 day period. Individuals are currently covid19 positive patients in our Current Health care system. The represents 9. 2 of total number of hospital beds. Sharedabout 9 when i this slide with you on monday. It is increasing, but again, at in the aggregate can absorb. I will talk a little bit more about what we are seeing at the county level. What we are seeing in the aggregate at the state level related to hospitalizations, not surprisingly, extends to the up 50 f icus of 15 over this twoweek period. Individuals that had been admitted into our icus. About 16. 6 of the total number of patients and our total totaltion, or rather our nicu beds of 7011. That is holding at 60 my present at the slides do you on monday. Still, north of ventilators available, but this is in the aggregate state wide. Doesnt represent what is happening at the local level and what is happening at the ground level. That is the purpose of this slide to talk about the counties on our monitoring less. 33,ounties, likely monitoring one or two others. Twoticipate a county or that will likely be there on a thursday. People fall off in come back on, but 30 two counties currently on the monitoring less. 38 counties 32 counties represented on this monitoring less. That number is fairly steady. 29 or so last week. Now, 32. People coming on, people coming off. As of the counties of most concern. Down amongthis different counties, you would see higher utilization and three counties. He was the other parts of the state like napa and others that dont have a lot of remaining icu capacity within their counties. That is a cause of concern, but please, consider that the concern is not unnoticed in terms of our pandemic planning, and terms of our strategy to engage on a regional basis our Health Care Delivery system, our hospital system, that absorbs patients from outside of counties into other counties. So while it is understandable that some of these things generate screaming headlines, it also i think should be contextualized that there are smaller jurisdictions that dont have a lot of capacity, just a few patients in the icu will fill up their icu capacity, but that does not mean we are not attending to the needs of those patients. The contrary. That is apart of the larger, regional approach. Are points ofies consideration. The central valley, we are starting to see an increase in spread. Southern california continues to remain stubborn in terms of the spread, but you will see counties on that list increasingly going further and further north of the bay area, and you will see a number of those represented on this slide that came on over the course of last week or two, reinforcing that no part of our state is immune from the transmission of this virus, and that is why it remains incumbent upon all of us to wear a mask, the most significant, nonpharmaceutical intervention you have at your disposal, and at the extent you dont, please go to our covid19 yourselves ofil all of the resources, not just knowledge on that side, but have the opportunity to look at support, if you need the support, to get masks. Or if you are in an industry that you feel you need the broadlyin terms of ppe defined beyond mass, i encourage you to look at that site. There are many things on that side that outlay the focus on strategies to provide and procure ppe. Have done that in our Public School system. We have provided millions and millions of masks, face shields, hand sanitizer, over 50 plus thousand temperature devices, over two months of ppe has been provided to our Public Education system. We will provide more as needed. Yes, we consider the size of face masks, recognizing that my four or fiveyearold, sixyearolds, have different size faces then dad and mom. So, we also are considering that in terms of the next not only procurement, but we have been in the process up or cheering different sized masks, but in terms of the distribution, of the same. I want to make that point. That 5. 3 billion you saw on the equity slide was focusing on equity broadly, but it is money that is available for additional purchases of ppe. Money that is available for additional purposes of connected devices. Money that is available for money that is available to address the digital of eyed of what we call to address the Digital Divide of what we call learning loss to provide real resources to the School Districts, to allow them to make the kind of bulk purchases that are necessary at this moment to close those divides. I will remind you to physical distance. Wash her hands and minimize mixing, including large crowds, backyard events with ne