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The Georgia Department of Education is awarding digital learning grants totaling $21,578,236 to 55 school districts. The grants are intended to help districts shore up their digital/distance learning infrastructure in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Districts’ plans for the funds include purchasing digital devices (laptops, Chromebooks, or tablets) for students and teachers, providing training for teachers on distance learning, purchasing distance learning software, and installing mobile hotspots on buses or providing MiFi hotspots to students. A summary of each awarded district’s plans for the funds can be viewed here.

The grants are federal school improvement funds, and all districts with schools identified for Comprehensive Support & Improvement (CSI) or Targeted Support & Improvement (TSI) were eligible to apply.

“As we continue to fight COVID-19, I am grateful for the thousands of educators across our state who have adapted to continue providing a world-class education to Georgia students,” Governor Brian Kemp said. “These grants will provide much-needed support as they continue to navigate changing educational landscapes, and I want Georgia’s educators and students to know that they have our complete support in these challenging times.”

“The ‘digital divide’ in Georgia is not a new issue, but the COVID-19 pandemic has made it even more apparent,” State School Superintendent Richard Woods said. “School districts have done incredible work during the COVID-19 school closures and have been hard-working, creative, and thoughtful with the resources they have. But there is still a need for better digital learning infrastructure within our state, particularly in rural and underserved communities. These funds will help districts strengthen their digital learning capacity, extend summer learning opportunities, and ensure no student is left unconnected.”

Districts can use their digital learning funds from now through September 30, 2021.

Other Efforts to Expand Digital Access
The Georgia Foundation for Public Education (GFPE) is working with corporate and philanthropic partners to raise funds and create partnerships to get devices into students’ hands. To participate in this effort, visit GFPE.org/invest.

School districts will also receive substantial allocations of funds through the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. GaDOE will specifically recommend that districts use a portion of their CARES Act funding to ensure they have a plan in place for any future distance learning needs.

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By Clare S. Richie
and Collin Kelley

Thanks to the coronavirus pandemic, the entire world is getting a crash course in homeschooling. While many parents choose to homeschool, it’s been a big wake up call for the thousands of Intowners who send their students to public and private school campuses every day.

The schools closed down early out of an abundance of caution, cancelled extracurricular activities, proms and graduations. While no decision has been made about the 2020-21 academic year, which begins in August for most, there is a possibility that homeschooling might be extended if the number of COVID-19 cases remains a concern.

We asked parents about how they and their kids are adjusting to the new normal of learning at home.

“I’ve told people who ask ‘how’s it going homeschooling’ that having older kids has been really nice because they are pretty self-sufficient,” said Tessa Pickren, who has a junior, freshman, and 6^th grader at home

She said her older kids, who attend Grady High School, “know what they have to get done and have been pretty motivated.”

Her son, who attends Inman Middle School, usually gets his work done between 9 a.m. and noon. She’s heard from other parents that some teachers are giving more work than others. “Or maybe my son has the same amount and just gets it completed quickly.”

Pickren said the transition to homeschooling hasn’t been as hard, but said the challenge was keeping kids off their tech – phones, tablets, game consoles – all day. Still, she’s worried about other students who don’t have parents at home checking on them or the structure and resources available in the traditional classroom. “Those are the kids the pandemic is going to set back, and that’s sad to me.”

Renee Klein, mother to a freshman and sixth grader, said her family has “definitely gotten used to the routine of it all,” but learning the quirks of GoToMeeting and Zoom for online learning was definitely an adjustment.

“There’s not as much schoolwork as I would have thought,” Klein mused. “That’s probably a good thing, because the kids aren’t as stressed. And because everybody’s in it together, it is what it is. I’m not overthinking it. Are they learning enough? Will they be behind? We won’t know that. But they are definitely in the routine and getting to enjoy the fresh air. My sixth grader is on more of a schedule than my ninth grader, but I think that’s ok.”

Lauren Ellen –  who has three boys in first, third, and fifth grades  – said the first week of homeschooling was “really rough, to be completely honest.”

“It was hard and there were a lot of tears,” she said. “Having younger children, we don’t have a lot of technology in our house. Technology was the biggest adjustment for all of us –  everyone was on a device for the majority of the day.”

She said Atlanta Public Schools sent iPads home with all first and second graders, which was a big help, but her third and fifth graders were trying to share one computer and it just wasn’t working. “My husband actually went and bought a laptop halfway through day one. We are fortunate to have been in a position to be able to do this, because I know many families can’t.”

Now, more than a month in, Ellen said the kids have adjusted really well. “They start at 8:30 a.m. and end their school day around 1:30 or 2 p.m. The first week, they weren’t wrapping up until 4 in the afternoon and we were all stressed out. But we’ve gotten into a better groove now – we know the routine and the websites to go to. Everybody knows where their Google classroom is and they are not asking me questions about ‘where do I go, what am I supposed to do.’ They’ve gotten into a much better routine.”

Ellen she and her husband keep reminding themselves that homeschooling isn’t forever and work to “set the right tone for the day” for the family.

“I have literally walked out the door because I was so frustrated,” she said candidly. “But also, giving myself grace and giving them grace. I remind them: your teachers are learning, you’re learning, every kid in your class is learning. This is new for everybody, not just you, so don’t put pressure on yourself to feel like you’ve gotta get it right the first time. Because you’re probably not going to, and that’s ok. We’ll wake up tomorrow and give it another shot. I’ve learned that being humble and gracious will get me a lot further than trying to be in control.”

Another parent in the Grady cluster with a senior, freshman and fifth grader asked to remain anonymous, but said “everything is mostly going well,” although her senior had to deal with the most disappointments.

“He has been really, really sad,” the parent said about her son. “For the first few weeks, it was very hard, especially because we were taking it all very seriously and not leaving the house. Our son wanted to hang out with his friends before it was too late, but in my mind, it was already too late. They closed school for a reason.  All the cancellations – soccer, senior night, prom, graduation – it’s supposed to be one of the best times of their lives and they can’t participate. That’s been really difficult. He’s gotten better now, but I feel really bad for him. I remember my senior year and how much fun it was.”

Elizabeth Holmes, who has daughters in middle and high school at City Schools of Decatur, said the dining room table has become the new classroom at her home in the Oakhurst neighborhood.

“I’ve been trying to find the balance between helping them or just trusting them to handle their schoolwork,” Holmes said. “I’m mainly to go-between now of forwarding emails from teachers and following up if I’m alerted to a missed assignment.”

Holmes said the transition to homeschooling wasn’t as traumatic as she thought it would be, especially since she was working from home even before the pandemic. “The real navigation is when schoolwork is done for the day, and sometimes they’re done by 11 a.m. or noon. I’ve given up on managing their time on devices as long as their work is done, and I’ve been making sure we get outdoor time. Probably the biggest stressor we have now is how messy things get from when we’re all here all the time.”

Holmes said both of her kids enjoy getting a little extra sleep, but both were disappointed that there was no spring break. “Despite the anxiety and fear that we are all feeling, I’d say we’re pretty lucky over here.”

The post Learning at Home: Parents adjust to new routine of kids taking classes in the living room appeared first on Atlanta INtown Paper.

State Rep. Park Cannon, whose 58th district covers neighborhoods in Fulton and DeKalb Counties, has a message for the African-American community when it comes to COVID-19: “Listen to public health professionals who are on the frontlines instead of state officials who want to save face.”

Cannon is one of a number of African-American leaders sounding the alarm that coronavirus is disproportionately affecting their community – a fact that Gov. Brian Kemp and other state officials never mention during briefings or consider when making decisions like reopening businesses and restaurant dining rooms, Cannon said.

The Washington Post reported over the weekend African-Americans accounted for more than 50 percent of Georgia’s COVID-19 deaths, despite making up about 30 percent of the state’s 10.6 million people.

Cannon said that more than 500 of the 1,052 dead from COVID-19 are African-American.

Cannon said she was especially concerned about the lag in data and the way it’s being reported by the Georgia Department of Public Health. The AJC reported today that numbers of cases and reported deaths continue to change as the department shifts its method of counting cases, which is causing confusion for state officials and residents.

“The Georgia Department of Public Health staff is working around the clock, and I applaud them, but I question the statistics,” Cannon said. “I implore everyone to ask the state to create more fair reporting on the status of black Georgians.”

The latest figures – released at lunchtime on April 29 – show that Fulton and DeKalb counties have the highest number of cases of COVID-19 in the state. Fulton has 2,763 confirmed cases and 108 deaths, while DeKalb has 1,912 cases and 44 deaths.

The state’s figures also bear out Cannon’s concerns, with 38 percent of African-American females and  nearly 34 percent of African-American males making up the largest demographic of COVID-19 cases.

Cannon said Gov. Kemp’s decision to ignore federal guidelines and begin reopening businesses was a “dereliction in senior leadership in their duty to protect Georgians.”

Cannon encouraged African-American residents to speak with their doctors and health professionals and check the Georgia Legislative Black Caucus website at gablackcaucus.org and the Georgia NAACP website at naacpga.org for regular updates on how COVID-19 is affecting the community.

“People of color have proven ourselves resilient to pandemics, so we do have hope,” Cannon said.

The post Rep. Park Cannon urges African-Americans to listen to health professionals, not state officials on COVID-19 appeared first on Atlanta INtown Paper.

In recent weeks, three Emory University experts in critical care medicine and infectious diseases have been at the center of a national effort to establish comprehensive federal guidelines on the care of patients with COVID-19.

Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Treatment Guidelines, which were released by the National Institutes of Health on Tuesday, April 21, include treatment recommendations for patients at all stages of illness severity, as well as for those who are not infected.

The three Emory doctors involved in the project were among 29 experts from across the country who spent the last several weeks sifting through published studies, reviewing the data for a broad range of drugs that have been touted as effective treatments and comparing strategies for managing the illness in a critical care setting.

“For decades, Emory has been at the forefront of treating infectious diseases, implementing clinical trials and developing protocols for treating critically ill patients,” says Greg Martin, MD, MSc, professor in the Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine at Emory University School of Medicine and committee chair for critical care at Grady Memorial Hospital. “We are fortunate to be in a position to bring our expertise to bear in helping develop these guidelines for treating patients with COVID-19.”

Martin participated in the group on treating patients in a critical care setting. Craig Coopersmith, MD, professor of surgery and interim director of the Emory Critical Care Center, participated in the group on severely ill patients and the use of potential therapies to modify the immune response such as immunomodulators and disease-modifying medications. Jeffrey Lennox, MD, professor of medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Emory, helped to lead the group focusing on mild to moderate patients and the use of antiviral therapies in patients with COVID-19.

The ongoing pandemic has led to a surge in published case reports and studies as the medical research community worldwide has turned its attention to trying to understand COVID-19 and how to treat it. Part of the goal of the new guidelines is to distill the growing amount of research into a single resource that can be updated as scientific understanding as the illness evolves.

“When you see a study or case report out in the public domain mentioned without context, it is very hard for someone to ascertain whether it is legitimate or safe,” Martin says. “These guidelines represent an effort to create a resource that people can rely upon, informed by a critical review of the evidence we have to date.”

The group of experts split into four groups to develop clinically important recommendations that address potential therapies and encompass all patient types as well as special populations, such as pregnant women and children.

For the critical care group, Emory’s experience in treating patients in that setting provided a framework for the recommendations for managing treatment for critically ill patients with COVID-19.

“Emory has decades of experience treating similar conditions in a critical care setting that are now being used as a model for the care of COVID-19 patients,” Martin says. “We’re at the leading edge in developing and applying the current evidence on how you should manage a patient with COVID-19. You need to pay attention on how to use a mechanical ventilator, how you manage shock, and how to manage other cardiovascular, hematologic and neurologic complications of COVID-19. These are the foundations of Emory’s protocols.”

Coopersmith’s group spent much of their time discussing the evidence for using host-modifying agents to help combat the body’s immune response to COVID-19.

“For COVID-19, there is not yet any evidence that we can effectively manipulate the host immune response in a way that benefits the patient,” Coopersmith says. “When a patient is infected, it is not just the microbe itself that is causing the problem. Rather, it is a combination of the pathogen, and their own body’s response to the infection.”

Coopersmith, an expert on sepsis and the body’s response to such an infection, said his group reviewed small studies and case reports on the use of medicines that would modify the body’s response to the infection. Despite a high number of anecdotal published case reports, the group found insufficient data to recommend for or against the use of some such “host-modifying agents” outside the bounds of a clinical trial. For other drugs, the group expressly recommended against their use outside of a clinical trial.

“The reason we do randomized clinical trials is that outside of that structure, you don’t know how a patient would have done if you had not given them to drug,” Coopersmith explains. “It is incredibly important that efforts to test these drugs be directed into the framework of such a trial. Unfortunately, there is a long history in critical care of trying drugs that had a plausible biological rationale that turned out to be ineffective or even harmful. So even in the time of a pandemic, it is important to rigorously weigh available evidence in order to treat patients with therapies whose benefits outweigh their risks.”

Lennox, who is co-director of the Emory Center for AIDS Research Clinical Research Core, participated in a group that was tasked with reviewing the use of several antiretroviral drugs that are used for HIV patients. Their group also recommended that such drugs not be used outside of a clinical trial.

“Many of these medications can have potentially life-threatening drug interactions that need to be understood whenever they are prescribed,” says Lennox. “Until there’s sufficient evidence to show that these drugs can be efficacious against COVID-19, we believe they should be used only in a clinical trial.”

The guidelines will be updated regularly as new recommendations are made.