Thread by @oliviakrauth

Kentucky's special session on COVID-19 starts today.

A working draft of an education-specific bill shared with me would end the Ky. Board of Ed's mask mandate for public schools.

A non-NTI "remote learning" category would be created.

Districts could assign individual schools, grades, classes or groups of students to remote learning but could not go longer than necessary to alleviate student and staff absences.

Districts would get up to 20 remote days.

Districts could NOT assign all students in the district to remote learning, so this wouldn't be a NTI shutdown type of thing.

The working draft, again a *draft*, does not offer additional NTI days.

On days districts use NTI, all non-quarantined staff would need to work at school/on-site.

Some districts enforced this early in the pandemic and took some heat for doing so. I'm not sure why this is in the bill now.

Dept. of Public Health would need to create a "test to stay" program to help schools reduce student quarantines. Districts are *not* required to adopt a test to stay model, though.

Several items in the draft aim to help with staffing, including temporary changes for substitutes and retired teachers.

Classified staff could also perform instructional duties without being with a certified staff member.

Back up to the test to stay portion of the thread — DPH would also need to provide guidance around quarantining that would differentiate between masked, unmasked and fully vaccinated.

So districts wouldn't need to require masks but doing so may reduce quarantines.

Districts would be able to incentivize vaccines for students and staff but "a school district shall not use intimidation tactics or negative incentives to encourage vaccinations."

I am not sure what counts as an "intimidation tactic."

Why must you taunt me.