Seattle-area private schools grapple with fall reopening decisions

Some Seattle-area private schools have announced that they will begin the school year remotely, as many school districts plan to do.

This comes after Governor Jay Inslee’s recommendation Wednesday that schools in counties with high rates of coronavirus transmission remain closed in September. Others have yet to announce whether they will hold classes in-person.

In Seattle, Archdiocesan Catholic schools announced Thursday that they will start the school year remotely given the governor’s guidelines. The decision for all-remote classes affects Catholic schools throughout Western Washington, from Chehalis to Bellingham.

“While we miss our students and are eager to welcome them into classrooms, the safety of our students and staff and the care for the common good of the community remains paramount in our decision-making process,” wrote Kristin Dixon, superintendent of Office for Catholic Schools and Seattle Archbishop Paul D. Etienne, in a letter to principals.

The Bush School announced Thursday that it would most likely be starting the year remotely, and would make a final decision within one week.

Lakeside School, which has been considering either part-time in-person classes or an all-remote model, told families Wednesday that it was reviewing Inslee’s recommendations and framework in making its decision.

At Seattle Academy, students are currently slated to attend in person every other week, although the school’s website said that directives from the governor could change that plan at any time.

Private schools are grappling with their plans at a time when most public schools in the Puget Sound area have already announced plans to teach online, with no in-person attendance, this fall.

In a news conference Wednesday, Inslee said it’s not safe for the “vast, vast majority” of students in Washington state to go back to school in-person this fall. He indicated that 25 counties across the state, including King, Snohomish, and Pierce, are being classified as “high risk” and have levels of Covid-19 transmission that are too high for in-person instruction to be safe this fall. The new guidelines also recommend cancelling or postponing extracurricular activities in such counties.

Many private schools have advantages over public schools in preventing the spread of illness, including smaller class sizes, modern ventilation systems, and student/teacher ratios that make it easier to follow health department mandates. While elementary class sizes in Seattle Public Schools often exceed two dozen children to one teacher, private schools classes are often much smaller and can include multiple instructors.

The pressure to please tuition-paying families -- and a lack of unionized employees who can exert influence on reopening -- also influence private schools’ decisions.

Inslee also said that private schools may only open if they can follow the state’s Covid-19 safety mandates -- including maintaining six feet of distance between students in the classroom, enforced mask requirements, and following hygiene and cleaning regimens.

“There are requirements on private schools, and if they cannot meet them, and if they do not comply with them, they not they cannot legally open,” Inslee said.

Anna Boiko-Weyrauch contributed reporting.