LIHU’E — Hawai‘i Department of Education’s student and staff COVID cases are higher than initially reported, according to its online dashboard.
While the numbers occasionally change as data is being processed, Wednesday HIDOE reported just 369 COVID cases between Dec. 26 and Jan. 4. Thursday the dashboard was updated to show 1,093 cases during that same timeframe, and an additional 295 cases were reported for Jan. 5.
Of those cases, 122 were on Kaua‘i, more than tripling the weekly case count during the height of the delta serge.
Most of the recent cases are not school-related so far as more than 90% of Kaua‘i COVID positive students and staff members had not been on campus since the start of winter break on Dec. 17.
The high number of positive cases in the last week highlights the undertaking schools have as the contagious omicron variant drives up case counts across the state.
The amount of teachers calling out sick is putting a strain on the district’s already short-staffed substitute teacher pool.
HIDOE reported Wednesday that across the state, 800 teachers called sick, and an additional 800 were out for other reasons including vacation and personal leave. That 1,600 represents 12% of public school teachers.
Substitute teacher requests went 24% unfilled leaving schools short 400 hundred teachers. That is up from this school year’s average of 12% daily unfilled substitute requests, according to a HIDOE report released in December.
It is unclear how the substitute teacher shortage is affecting Kaua‘i as HIDOE does not break down substitute requests by complex area and was unable to answer information requests for the Kapa‘a-Kaua‘i-Waimea Complex Area.
With COVID surging, it is unclear what would warrant a return to distance learning.
Interim Superintendent Keith Hayashi declined to give specifics on contingency plans Wednesday.
“We didn’t identify a specific threshold because there are many different variables that go into any decision,” Hayashi said during a media briefing then. “We take any decision to close a particular classroom, or a grade level or a school (very seriously), because our commitment is to keep our schools open.”
According to Hayashi, each public school has a plan to address a variety of issues related to COVID-19. However, the district has faced criticism from the Hawai‘i State Teachers Association for a lack of transparency.
“The HSTA has been asking for months what the contingency plans are and the HIDOE has refused to share such plans,” the union said in a Dec. 29 statement. “If the HIDOE is truly prepared, it should direct all campuses to share those plans with staff and families so they can properly prepare.”
If classes are canceled, parents may have little notice as administrators may not know of a dire staffing shortage until the day of, Hayashi cautioned on Wednesday.
“I really want to share with our parents please continue to be flexible and understanding,” Hayashi said. “We are committed, again, to keeping our schools open. And it may be that day, that principals will be determining, you know, we’re not able to cover this particular class.
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Laurel Smith, staff writer and photographer, can be reached at 245-0424 or lsmith@thegardenisland.com.
