The City of Alexandria has released more information on upcoming vaccination stages as the state begins to move forwards the phase 1c.
According to the City of Alexandria, Virginia could start to move toward Phase 1c in the next few weeks as vaccine supply starts to increase. The move towards 1c is complicated by the fact that there are still a several thousand Alexandrians in Phase 1b who haven’t been vaccinated, including teachers who are now expected to return to school and restaurant workers the city recently moved into Phase 1b.
“Alexandria continues to make strides in vaccinating residents and essential workers, but AHD has nearly 20,000 pre-registrants in Phase 1b on the waitlist, who have not yet been contacted or vaccinated,” the city said in the press release. “Vaccine supply has been slowly increasing, from less than 2,000 total doses per week to the current approximately 5,000 doses, which are a mix of first and second doses.”
Mayor Justin Wilson had earlier said that the vaccination could take until late summer at the earlier pace of vaccine supply, but — knock on wood — that could be shorter if supply increases continue.
The @VDHgov announced that some health districts will be moving to phase 1C of vaccine distribution.
Alexandria still has nearly 20K 1B residents waiting.
While supply is increasing, there are likely 3-4 weeks left in 1B.
ALL residents should sign up!:https://t.co/eYELMtsTYj
— Justin Wilson (@justindotnet) March 17, 2021
“VDH and AHD anticipate these numbers to increase considerably in the coming weeks,” the city said. “AHD anticipates moving into Phase 1c in the next 3-4 weeks depending on an adequate supply of vaccine. The anticipated increase in vaccine supply, and eventual transition to Phase 1c, highlights the importance of pre-registering with vaccinate.virginia.gov, or updating your profile if you have already pre-registered.”
The city recently partnered with Fairfax County and Inova to launch a new vaccination hub in the Victory Center (5001 Eisenhower Avenue) to handle the increase in supply.
With any luck, the VDH estimates that Phase 1c will be complete and all of Virginia will be in Phase 2 by May.
According to the Virginia Department of Health, essential workers in Phase 1c include:
- Energy
- Water, wastewater, and waste removal workers (includes recycling removal workers)
- Housing and Construction
- Food Service
- Transportation and Logistics
- Institutions of Higher Education Faculty/Staff
- Finance
- Information Technology & Communication
- Media
- Legal Services
- Public Safety (engineers)
- Other Public Health Workers
Sydney Robasson needs structure. The 10-year-old rising fifth grader at Samuel L. Tucker Elementary is used to waking up at the crack of dawn, and even with the summer break she’s tried to keep herself to as much of a regimented schedule as possible.
Like thousands of Alexandria City Public School Students, Robasson, who wants to be a doctor or lawyer when she grows up, has had to adapt. She’s learning in a house with her parents and Maxwell, her six-year-old brother. And although the school year officially ended in June, she is participating in summer school.
“Summer school is going well,” Robasson said. “We are relearning in summer school the things that we already have, and that’s because we don’t really have time to waste, and we need to have that fresh in our minds so that when we do get back to school we can get back to the things we need to.”
Her mother, Miss Robasson, said that her daughter was strict with herself on mimicking her school day.
“I would say the transition as an adult has been challenging, and I can imagine how it’s been for students,” the Miss Robasson said.
From March until the remainder of the school year, her daughter woke up at 6 a.m. and worked throughout the day.
“First I’d wake up at like 6 a.m., then get ready for the day,” Sydney Robasson said. “After that, I clean up or relax and after that at 8:00 I start reading; at 9:00 I start math; at 10:00 I do social studies; at 11:00 I do my zoom call or more social studies time; at 12:00 I have lunch. After that I have Encore, and then I would have another two hours of regular free time or me doing writing.”
While her summer schedule is not as rigid, she is still focusing for a number of hours every day.
Stacey Swickert is Robasson’s science teacher and has been at home in La Plata, Maryland, with three daughters and her husband while trying to teach more than 100 students. The nine-year veteran teacher at Tucker now has 30 students on her summer school roster, and works four days a week.
“Things are going on in the world that are very interesting to our kids, and they definitely want a place to go and be able to talk about them,” Swickert said. “I miss my students so much. There’s a synergy when you’re in the same room.”
Fifth-grade students learn physical, Earth and life sciences throughout a school year, and Swickert said keeping kids motivated has been challenging.
“I have to make them like me, even if they don’t like science,” Swickert said. “For us, moving into summer was a natural progression to what we were already teaching.”
Robasson, whose favorite subject is social studies, wants to go back to school. She also hasn’t seen any of her friends since ACPS shut down on March 13.
“I’m lucky since I have my own email account, and we (she and her friends) can talk on Google Hangouts,” she said. “Being at home is annoying because my brother is annoying. He is mean.”
Summer school in Alexandria will end on July 31.
Courtesy photo
The city is rationing out spots in summer camp programs reopening soon, but even some in the city’s leadership are unclear on why space will be so limited while the city has a preponderance of unused space and resources.
“Summer camp programs are starting,” said Jim Spengler, director of Recreation, Parks and Cultural Activities in a recent joint meeting between the City Council and the School Board. “They are aimed at essential workers and will expand beyond essential workers based on enrollment.”
But Mayor Justin Wilson noted that with Phase 3 going into effect next week, many jobs are going to start expecting those employees to come back. With many summer camps canceled, those parents will be left without options for childcare programs.
“If that happens will expect to see a whole crunch of workers going back to work,” Wilson said. “To the extent that we have space, we can be essential in helping out frontline workers go back to the workspace. We have a lot of unused space, so I want us to explore our options before we say ‘we can’t use that capacity.'”
Wilson said staff needs to look at school facilities and city facilities to see what kind of space is available to be used for summer programming.
“It seems like we should be looking for every opportunity we can in this environment,” Wilson said. “I’m constantly hearing from parents who are very concerned about their ability to go back to work, particularly when bosses start to expect it. I feel like we can be part of that solution, and there’s money available for us to be part of this, but we have to work out the facility side of this.”
There are complications beyond just facility space, however. Spengler said limits with social distancing mean some spaces that aren’t being utilized aren’t viable as summer program spaces.
“As schools are finding with school buses, for example, social distancing really controls how many people you get together more than the aggregate number you’re given by the Governor,” Spengler said. “The other is if we were able to enroll more students, then we have a staffing issue. We don’t have the staff available because we didn’t do normal summer hiring, so we don’t have the staff capacity to expand much beyond where we are right now.”
But city leaders said that with the city still facing high unemployment figures, not having staff shouldn’t be a problem.
“I feel like that’s a solvable problem,” Wilson said. “I’ll be crystal clear, that seems like something we should be able to figure it out. It seems like this is not a normal circumstance and we can find staff, there’s a lot of people looking for jobs.”
“I would echo the mayor’s sentiment,” City Councilman John Chapman said. “This is an extraordinary time, but we do have a number of people looking for opportunities. Capacity is something that we just need to work through. I don’t think it’s something that we stop at and say ‘We can’t do it’ because if we’re vocal about looking for people, I think we’ll get quality people who would be able to run some of our programmings.”
Wilson added that a good place to start would be hiring from canceled summer camp programs.
Staff photo by James Cullum
Gade Wins Primary, Faces Warner in November Election — “Gade handily defeated Thomas A. Speciale II and Alissa A. Baldwin in Tuesday’s Republican primary with about two-thirds of the votes cast statewide. In the City of Alexandria, Gade received about 63 percent of approximately 2,100 votes cast.” [Alexandria Living]
The Birchmere Reopening in July — “The Birchmere on Mount Vernon Avenue announced that the Billy Price Charm City Rhythm Band will perform July 10… During the public health emergency, there will be a $25 food and beverage minimum and a $5 fee the venue is calling a ‘Covid fee.'” [WTOP]
Two Free Food Distributions Today — “There will be a food distribution this Thursday, 6/25 from 5-6pm at John Adams with ALIVE and World Central Kitchen and this Saturday, 6/27 from 8:30-10:30am at both John Adams and Cora Kelly.” [Facebook]
New Job: DASH Temperature and Wellness Screener — “DASH is looking for temporary Temperature and Wellness Screeners to work full-time and part-time at the Alexandria, VA facility. Medical experience and/or a medical certification is preferred but not required. Temporary assignment will start ASAP with end date depending on business needs related to COVID-19.” [Indeed]
New Job: Police Human Resources and Labor Relations Division Chief — “The Human Resources and Labor Relations Division Chief is responsible for a variety of departmental functions including human resources, budgeting, new police officer training, DCJS mandated training, employee wellness, Peer Support and resiliency programs, and engagement with departmental labor groups.” [City of Alexandria]
Beyer to Introduce Legislation for Law Enforcement to Wear Identifying Badges — “We don’t do secret police in the United States of America. I will introduce House legislation in the next few days to require uniformed federal officers to identify themselves by wearing badges. Next step will be working for broad support in the House. More soon.” [Twitter]
Tenants and Workers United Gives Food and Supplies to 400 Families — “Today we gave food, needs, and diapers to almost 400 families!! This was possible by Arlington Calvary United Methodist Church. Our community greatly appreciates this support during these difficult times!” [Facebook]
Alexandria Back to Business Grant Application Deadline at 5 p.m. — “Applications for the ALX B2B Grant are open (as of Thursday, June 4th at 8:00AM EDT), and will close Monday, June 8th at 5:00 PM (EDT).” [AEDP]
Del. Herring Thanks Inova Alexandria Hospital Workers — “Thank you @InovaHealth Alexandria for this display of unity & caring for our community. #WhiteCoatsforBlackLives” [Twitter]
Vice Mayor Sends Message of Solidarity With Black Leaders — “I have a responsibility to use my platform to speak up about these issues. The best way to do that is to amplify the voices of black leaders in our community. If you haven’t already done so, please listen to and read their words. And then take action.” [Elizabeth Bennett-Parker]
ACPS Announces Collection and Return of School Materials — “The school closures related to COVID-19 and the Governor’s stay-at-home order have forced us to make a new plan of how we collect students’ school materials and also allow our students to get personal belongings from their lockers or classrooms.” [ACPS]
Alexandrian Named National Eagle Scout Runner-Up — “Noah Ventura, an Alexandria resident and rising senior at Gonzaga College High School, has been named the American Legion’s Eagle Scout of the Year Runner-Up for 2020. As a recipient of the award, he is receiving a $2,500 college scholarship.” [Zebra]
Local Filmmakers Selected for Alexandria Symphony Series — “The films will accompany music by American composers performed “live to picture” by the orchestra as part of ASO’s 2020-2021 season on November 7 and 8, 2020. The works will also be screened as part of the Alexandria Film Festival on November 12-15.” [Zebra]
Reminder: Here’s a List of ACPS Free Food Distributions — “ACPS has multiple distribution meal site locations throughout Alexandria for all ACPS students and children over the age of two.” [ACPS]
New Job: Contact Tracer — “The Contact Tracer is an entry level public health professional responsible for identifying and contacting individuals who may have come in contact with persons recently diagnosed with an infectious disease associated with an outbreak or pandemic.” [Indeed]
For Alexandria City Public Schools students this year, summer school is not exactly optional.
ACPS announced last week that students will be expected to participate in a summer learning program to compensate for time lost in classrooms in the latter half of the 2019-2020 academic year. Parents who do not want their children to participate will be required to submit a form explaining why they want to opt-out of the summer program.
“Academic loss during COVID-19 is real,” the school division said in its website. “This year, it has the potential to be combined with summer learning loss. It is important that we as a school division do everything within our power to ensure students’ learning needs are being met, especially during these unprecedented times. Therefore, to minimize summer learning loss, we are offering summer learning and enrichment for all students.”
All students are expected to participate and most classes, except a handful of programs at T.C. Williams High School, will be free.
The summer school will take place from July 6-31, with classes Monday-Thursday. Pre-K through eighth-grade classes will be held from 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m. while high school classes will be held from 9 a.m.-2 p.m.
Individual summer program guidelines are available for:
According to the website:
The goal of summer learning is to engage, enrich, and prepare students for the anticipation of September 2020 and is based on the following principles:
- Engaging content paced to afford students the opportunity to self-monitor and receive feedback and coaching. Feedback and coaching are essential for student success in the virtual context.
- Preparation for the next grade level for all rising sixth grade students and secondary students through boost/prep course.
- Pre-K through fourth grade students will continue using learning kits and Chromebooks with an additional feature of virtual check-in or phone support for our pre-K through second grade students.
- Feedback and grading are essential to Summer 2020. Students will receive feedback and coaching or grades for credit-bearing courses that will go on transcripts.
Photo via ACPS/Facebook
