Also in today’s Morning Jolt, back in July 2020, the Newton, Mass., school district was struggling with the familiar issues of reopening schools and how to keep a safe distance between people.

https://bit.ly/3jU0MgK 

Mayor Ruthanne Fuller emailed a Harvard Professor of Medicine and Chief of Infectious Disease to weigh in, asking, “On a policy issue, we are leaning to 6’ of separation in our classrooms rather than the 3’ that DESE/WHO allow. Thoughts?”

https://bit.ly/3jU0MgK 

The reply from Harvard’s chief of infectious disease was clear:

“I do think if people are masked it is quite safe and much more practical to be at 3 feet. I think this is very viable for the middle/high schools and even late grade schools and would improve the feasibility."

"I suspect you may want to be at 6f for some of the very young kids who can’t mask.” She also referred the town leaders to Harvard’s COVID-19 School and Community Resource Library document, which made the same assessment. https://bit.ly/3jU0MgK 

Harvard’s chief of infectious disease in July was . . . Rochelle Walensky, now the director of the CDC.

https://bit.ly/3jU0MgK 

So in July, Walensky told her own school district, in writing, if people are masked it is quite safe and much more practical to be at 3 feet for the middle/high schools and even late grade schools.

But now as CDC Director, she says six feet is needed.

https://bit.ly/3jU0MgK 

The e-mail:

https://bit.ly/3jU0MgK 

https://bit.ly/3b5zekp