Amid an increase in Covid-19 cases, the Los Angeles Unified School District is beginning its new year encouraging parents to send their children to school even if they have a minor cold. “If we’re just talking about, you know, mild cold symptoms, you can send your child to school maybe with a mask, maybe with some light meds,” said district Superintendent Alberto Carvalho. “But children need to be in school. There’s an over the cautious approach to mild symptoms. That needs to be rectified.” LAUSD’s chief medical officer, Smita Malhotra, released a message to the district community and said “schools are some of the safest places for children to be” and that Covid risks for younger children remain lower. However, if a child has a fever of above 100.4 degrees — or vomits, has diarrhea, severe pain, or labored breathing — they should stay home, the message states. “The greatest effect from the pandemic that I have seen in children has been the emotional trauma from missing school,” Malhotra said in the message. “Schools are foundations of resilience, and I look forward to ensuring that schools continue to be the safest places for children to be so that all students thrive academically, are engaged and are ready for the world.”
