*Update* Excelsior announced that the campus closure will continue for the remainder of the year. Be sure to check your student email frequently for more updates from your facilitator!
Today [March 16th], Excelsior sent out an automated call and email announcing that in addition to the series of recent cancellations, workshops will be canceled until April 20th. This followed yesterday’s news that the first case of the coronavirus (COVID-19) in San Bernardino County was confirmed, and that VVC would be suspending their classes for the remainder of March. This suspension of workshops overlaps with Excelsior’s previously scheduled spring break, however, it also coincides with the remainder of quarter 3 and its testing period, so Excelsior will be providing a list of support—as outlined in the letter below—and will allow us to test at home through Canvas with no access code required. Facilitators will also remain available through email and meetings will likely be done over the phone—though individual facilitators may say otherwise.
For the past couple of months, people have grown increasingly concerned about the spread of the coronavirus, but until March 12th there was little impact on the average person’s daily life. On March 11th, the coronavirus was officially declared a pandemic and was addressed by President Trump from the Oval Office. The following day, there was a massive national response from local and state lawmakers, event coordinators, and companies announcing the cancellation of events involving mass gathering. As of March 13th, the president officially declared a national emergency and preventative measures have only increased (Kumar, 2020).
For many Excelsior students, the postponing of Music Man on March 12th was the first major effect that cemented the severity of the country’s response to this pandemic. Along with this decision, was the cancellation of field trips scheduled in March, upcoming dances and festivals, and in cooperation with the CIF, the hosting of sporting events without spectators. These cancellations were in response to the official announcement the same day from California Governor Gavin Newson and public health experts that “gatherings with 250 people or more should be rescheduled or canceled” (Newsom, 2020). The CDC has since changed their recommendation and are now saying that gatherings of over 50 people be canceled for the next 8 weeks, but no further state regulation has been issued on the size of gatherings (CDC, 2020).
At the point in which these decisions were made, no cases of the coronavirus had been confirmed in the San Bernardino county. On March 15th however, the first case was confirmed by Kaiser Permanente Medical Center in Fontana (Estacio, 2020). Rumors of other cases in the High Desert have circulated for the past month, but due to limited testing, no other cases have been confirmed. Therefore, we have no definitive way of knowing if there are any other cases, as with the rest of the country until more test kits are developed and distributed.
Locally we’ve yet to see restrictions on the level of high-risk areas like LA, however, many public facilities—such as Victorville City Hall, Victorville City Library, etc. —are being closed until March 30th, and major stores such as Walmart and WinCo have announced new hours in response to coronavirus concerns and recent panic buying (Valdez, 2020).
As many have pointed out, the death rate and rate of hospitalization for the coronavirus is relatively low, and the virus mainly impacts older adults and those with underlying conditions, however even if you’re at a low-risk yourself, anyone who hasn’t previously contracted and recovered from the virus can spread it to others (CDC, 2020). Preventative measures are being taken in order to protect high-risk individuals and slow the spread of the virus. Though a full and quick recovery is not unlikely for those who contract the virus, the concern of public officials and healthcare experts is that the virus will spread faster than the U.S. health care system can handle, thus the implementation of “social distancing” (Roberts, 2020).
Numerous graphics have been released to further explain the plan known as “flattening the curve.” Though the virus can not be halted immediately, the goal of measures like school closures and the cancellation of mass gatherings is to slow the spread of the virus enough for our healthcare system to manage the outbreak. These measures likely feel drastic, and everyone’s feeling their impact right now, but despite the panic, we’re seeing the country come together in a massive way to address this crisis. School will resume, businesses will reopen, we will make it through, as long as we do our part and remain calm.
Additional Resources
For more information on the coronavirus and how best to do your part in containing it, visit https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html
For local updates on regulations and recommendations visit http://wp.sbcounty.gov/dph/coronavirus/?fbclid=IwAR2KOFhr9YLS8wsyLesCCeBPYJDL93JtsgSQTGqFaXAWeqHHkLD2060LJI8
And for further visuals explaining the role of social distancing to combat this virus, visit https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2020/world/corona-simulator/
Works Cited
“Coronavirus 2019.” Coronavirus 2019 | Department of Public Health, 2020, http://wp.sbcounty.gov/dph/coronavirus/?fbclid=IwAR2KOFhr9YLS8wsyLesCCeBPYJDL93JtsgSQTGqFaXAWeqHHkLD2060LJI8.
“Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19).” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 12 Mar. 2020, www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html.
“Get Your Mass Gatherings or Large Community Events Ready.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 14 Mar. 2020, www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/large-events/mass-gatherings-ready-for-covid-19.html.
Gillespie, Claire. “This Graph About Slowing Coronavirus Is Going Viral-Here's What It Actually Means.” Health.com, 13 Mar. 2020, www.health.com/condition/infectious-diseases/coronavirus/flatten-the-curve-meaning.
Kumar, Anita. “Trump Declares National Emergency in Latest Bid to Combat Coronavirus.” POLITICO, 13 Mar. 2020, www.politico.com/news/2020/03/13/coronavirus-emergency-declaration-trump-128530.
Newsom, Gavin. “California Public Health Experts: Mass Gatherings Should Be Postponed or Canceled Statewide to Slow the Spread of COVID-19.” Office of Governor, 12 Mar. 2020, www.gov.ca.gov/2020/03/11/california-public-health-experts-mass-gatherings-should-be-postponed-or-canceled-statewide-to-slow-the-spread-of-covid-19/.
Roberts, Siobhan. “Flattening the Coronavirus Curve.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 11 Mar. 2020, www.nytimes.com/2020/03/11/science/coronavirus-curve-mitigation-infection.html.
Stevens, Harry. “These Simulations Show How to Flatten the Coronavirus Growth Curve.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 14 Mar. 2020, www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2020/world/corona-simulator/.
Valdez, Hugo. “Stores Adjusting Hours amid Coronavirus Panic Shopping in the Victor Valley.” VVNG.com, 15 Mar. 2020, www.vvng.com/stores-adjusting-hours-amid-coronavirus-panic-shopping-in-the-victor-valley/.
“Victorville, CA.” Coronavirus (COVID-19) Updates | Victorville, CA, 2020, www.victorvilleca.gov/services/emergency-services/covid-19.
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