School responses in South Dakota to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic
As students returned to school for the 2021-2022 school year, states set a variety of policies on education and the COVID-19 pandemic, including how schools should open to in-person instruction and whether students and staff would be required to wear masks. By the end of the 2020-2021 school year, about 66% of students nationwide were in states that left closure decisions to schools or districts, 33% were in states with state-ordered in-person instruction, and 1% were in states with state-ordered regional school closures.[1][2] All 50 states closed schools to in-person instruction at some point during the 2019-2020 school year in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
This article summarizes responses to the coronavirus in South Dakota schools in the academic years ending in 2020, 2021, and 2022. You will find:
- A timeline of events by school year
- A nationwide summary of school mask and vaccine requirements in the 2021-2022 school year
- A summary of school reopening statuses in the 2020-2021 academic year
- A summary of school reopening statuses in the 2019-2020 academic year
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Timeline by school year
Below is a list of major events involving schools in South Dakota during the coronavirus pandemic between 2019 and 2022, including school closings and openings, mask requirements, and the release of statewide operating guidance. Know of something we missed? Click here to email us and let us know.
2021-2022 school year
- Sept. 9, 2021: At the beginning of the school year, Burbio, a school data aggregator, reported no in-person schooling disruptions in South Dakota.[3][4]
2020-2021 school year
- June 29, 2021: At the end of the school year, Burbio reported all schools were in-person in South Dakota .[5][6]
- Sept. 10, 2020: At the beginning of the school year, Burbio reported most schools were in-person in South Dakota .[7][8]
- July 28, 2020: Gov. Kristi Noem (R) said that schools would open in the fall and that she would not consider closing schools in the event of a coronavirus resurgence.[9]
- June 2020: The South Dakota Department of Education partnered with the Department of Health to release “Starting Well 2020,” a series of documents containing guidance on reopening and daily operations for K-12 schools. The documents covered several areas, including guidelines for teachers, special education, libraries, distance learning, school buses, and COVID-19 mitigation. Many of the guidelines were updated throughout July.[10]
2019-2020 school year
- April 6, 2020: Gov. Kristi Noem (R) closed schools for the remainder of the academic year. Prior to the announcement, schools were closed through May 1.[11]
- March 24, 2020: Noem announced that the statewide school closure, initially scheduled to end March 27, was extended through May 1.[12]
- March 17, 2020: Noem announced that schools in the state would remain closed for the week following spring break, through March 27.[13]
Mask and vaccine requirements in the 2021-2022 school year
Mask requirements in schools
As of August 1, 2022, no states had school mask requirements in effect. Forty-two states left mask requirements in schools up to local authorities. Seven states banned school mask requirements.
The table below shows statewide school mask requirement laws and orders in states with school mask requirements or school mask requirement bans in place at the end of the 2021-2022 school year.
Mask requirement orders | |||
---|---|---|---|
State | Ban or requirement? | Type of order | Date lifted or altered |
Arizona | Ban | Legislative action | K.A. |
Arkansas | Ban | Legislative action | Sept. 30, 2021 - Suspended by court action |
California | Requirement | California Department of Public Health order | March 12, 2022 - Lifted by executive action |
Connecticut | Requirement | Executive order | Feb. 28, 2022 - Lifted by executive action |
Delaware | Requirement | Executive order | March 1, 2022 - Lifted by executive action |
Florida | Ban | Executive order | N/A[14] |
Georgien | Ban | Legislative action | K.A. |
Hawaii | Requirement | Executive order | Aug. 1, 2022 - Lifted by executive action |
Illinois | Requirement | Illinois Department of Public Health order | Feb. 4, 2022 - Suspended by court action[15] |
Iowa | Ban | Legislative action | May 16, 2022 - Reinstated by court action[16] |
Kentucky | Requirement | Kentucky Board of Education order | Sept. 9, 2021 - Suspended by state law |
Louisiana | Requirement | Executive order | Feb. 16, 2022 - Lifted by executive action[17] |
Maryland | Requirement | Maryland State Board of Education order | March 1, 2022 - Lifted by executive action[18] |
Massachusetts | Requirement | Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education order | Feb. 28, 2022 - Lifted by executive action[19] |
Nevada | Requirement | Executive order | Feb. 10, 2022 - Lifted by executive action |
New Jersey | Requirement | Executive order | March 7, 2022 - Lifted by executive action |
New Mexico | Requirement | New Mexico Public Education Department order | Feb. 17, 2022 - Lifted by executive action |
New York | Requirement | Executive order | March 3, 2022 - Lifted by executive action |
Oklahoma | Ban | Executive order | K.A. |
Oregon | Requirement | Oregon Health Authority and Department of Education order | March 12, 2022 - Lifted by executive action |
Pennsylvania | Requirement | Pennsylvania Department of Health order | Dec. 10, 2021 - Suspended by court action |
Rhode Island | Requirement | Executive order | March 4, 2022 - Lifted by executive action |
South Carolina | Ban | Legislative action | Sept. 28, 2021 - Temporarily suspended by court action |
Tennessee | Ban | Executive order | Dec. 10, 2021 - Suspended by court action |
Texas | Ban | Executive order | N/A[20] |
Utah | Ban | Legislative action | K.A. |
Virginia | Ban | Legislative action | K.A. |
Washington | Requirement | Washington State Department of Public Health order | March 12, 2022 - Lifted by executive action |
School mask requirements over time
School mask bans over time
Teacher and school employee vaccine requirements
Seven states had issued a statewide requirement for K-12 teachers and staff to be vaccinated against the coronavirus or receive regular coronavirus testing during the 2021-2022 school year. The table below shows teacher and staff vaccine requirement laws and orders in states that issued such policies during the 2021-2022 school year.
Vaccine requirement orders | |||
---|---|---|---|
State | Testing instead of vaccination allowed? | Type of order | Date effective |
California | Yes | California Department of Public Health order | Oct. 15, 2021 |
Connecticut | No | Executive order | Sept. 27, 2021 |
Delaware | Yes | Executive order | Nov. 1, 2021 |
Illinois | Yes | Executive order | Issued: Sept. 19, 2021 Suspended by court action on Feb. 4, 2022 |
New Jersey | Yes | Executive order | Oct. 18, 2021 |
New York | Yes | Executive order | Sept. 19, 2021 |
Oregon | No | Executive order | Oct. 18, 2021 |
Washington | No | Executive order | Oct. 18, 2021 |
Student vaccine requirements
On Oct. 1, 2021, California was the first state to announce a vaccine requirement for eligible students. Louisiana also announced a vaccine requirement for eligible students on Dec. 14, but then announced the state would be removing the coronavirus vaccine from the list of required immunizations in schools on May 18, 2022.
School reopenings and closures (2020-2021 academic year)
Initial school year operating plan
South Dakota released an initial operating plan for the 2020-2021 school year in June, 2020. An analysis of this plan appeared in our Documenting America's Path to Recovery newsletter on August 3. The sections below include an analysis of the plan, the details of the plan, and reactions from officials to the plan.
This section will show a summary of South Dakota's reopening plan from our daily newsletter, Documenting America’s Path to Recovery.
In June, the South Dakota Department of Education partnered with the Department of Health to release “Starting Well 2020,” a series of documents containing guidance on reopening and daily operations for K-12 schools. The documents cover several areas, including guidelines for teachers, special education, libraries, distance learning, school buses, and COVID-19 mitigation. Many of the guidelines were updated throughout July.
South Dakota does not have a statewide date for public schools to reopen. According to EdWeek, schools in South Dakota typically start in mid-August.
On March 17, Gov. Kristi Noem (R) first ordered schools to close. On March 24, Noem extended the closures through May 1. On April 6, Noem ordered schools to close to in-person instruction for the remainder of the academic year.
Context
South Dakota is a Republican trifecta. The governor is a Republican, and Republicans have majorities in both chambers of the state legislature.
The following tables show public education statistics in South Dakota, including a rank comparing it to the other 49 states. Rank one is the highest number of each figure, rank 50 is the lowest. All data comes from the Common Core of Data provided by the National Center for Education Statistics.
South Dakota school metrics | ||
---|---|---|
Kategorie | Figure | Rank |
Per pupil spending (16-17) | $11,531 | 36 |
Number of students (18-19) | 138,444 | 45 |
Number of teachers (Fall 2016) | 9,777 | 45 |
Number of public schools (18-19) | 702 | 41 |
Student:teacher ratio (18-19) | 14.1 | 16 |
Percent qualifying for free/reduced lunch (16-17) | 37.9% | 43 |
South Dakota school revenue | ||
---|---|---|
Kategorie | Figure | Rank |
Total revenue | $1,420,613,000 | 50 |
Federal revenue percent | 14.9% | 1 |
State revenue percent | 30.4% | 49 |
Local revenue percent | 54.8% | 8 |
Details
District reopening plans
“Starting Well 2020” calls for school leaders to “develop plans in concert with local government and state health officials, using the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the South Dakota Department of Health as key resources to inform their decision making.” The guidance says plans should be adaptable to changing conditions. It also asks schools to communicate their plans with staff, students, and communities.
The state does not need to approve schools’ plans. “Starting Well 2020” contains the following guiding principles for schools:
" |
|
” |
In-person, hybrid, and online learning
“Starting Well 2020” says “Schools will provide instruction in the fall and throughout the 2020-21 school year, with a priority placed on face-to-face instruction.” However, schools are encouraged to develop flexible plans that allow for remote learning when necessary.
" | Whether a district is able to accommodate long-term remote learning and instruction in the classroom, in parallel throughout the year, is a local decision. Districts are encouraged to determine to what extent, if any, such parallel instruction can be accommodated and communicate that policy to parents and the community. Districts are further encouraged to set policies that, to the extent practical, provide for stability in the learning environment when allowing for long-term remote learning.
Regardless of other factors that currently exist, SD DOE recommends districts have a plan in place for fully remote learning and building closures should circumstances dictate during the year. (Example: a student tests positive and you need to close a section of your school upon SD DOH recommendation for cleaning. Or, there are multiple active cases in your school, necessitating additional steps based upon SD DOH recommendations).[21] |
” |
Mask requirements
The South Dakota Department of Education is not requiring students or staff to wear masks. The decision is left up to schools and districts. The Department of Health and Department of Education back-to-school FAQ says:
“The DOH and DOE encourage school leaders to use a variety of mitigation strategies in their planning for SY 2020-21. In selecting which to use, school leaders need to balance public health considerations and current conditions of the virus in their communities with the overall health of students and staff.”
In-person health recommendations and requirements
Schools should answer the following questions before reopening:
" |
|
” |
The guidance includes the following information on classroom design decisions:
" |
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” |
Transportation and busing requirements and restrictions
“Starting Well 2020” includes the following considerations for transportation and busing:
" |
|
” |
The Department of Health guidelines for school buses, which were last revised on July 7, recommends:
" |
|
” |
Map of school closures
The map below shows the status of school reopenings and closures at the end of the 2020-2021 academic year.
As of July 8, 2021, the status of school closures and reopenings was as follows:
- Two states (Delaware, Hawaii) and Washington, D.C. had state-ordered regional school closures, required closures for certain grade levels, or allowed hybrid instruction only.
- 2019-20 enrollment: 410,896 students (0.81% of students nationwide)
- Thirteen states had state-ordered in-person instruction.
- 2019-20 enrollment: 15,697,460 students (30.96% of students nationwide)
- One state (Arizona) had state-ordered in-person instruction for certain grades.
- 2019-20 enrollment: 1,152,586 students (2.27% of students nationwide)
- Thirty-four states left decisions to schools or districts.
- 2019-20 enrollment: 33,449,499 students (65.96% of students nationwide)
School reopenings and closures (2019-2020 academic year)
The map below shows the status of school reopenings and closures at the end of the 2019-2020 academic year.
- States closed to in-person instruction for the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year: 48
- Number of public school students in states closed to in-person instruction for the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year: 50,261,464
The chart below shows the first date schools in a state were closed to in-person instruction during the 2019-2020 academic year, divided by the political party of the governor.
School responses by state
To read about school responses to the coronavirus pandemic in other states, click one of the following links below:
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Florida
- Georgien
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
General resources
The chart below shows coronavirus statistics from countries across the world. The information is provided by Real Clear Politics.
Click the links below to explore official resources related to the coronavirus outbreak.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
- National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
- Occupational Safety and Health Administration, U.S. Department of Labor
- U.S. Department of Education
- World Health Organization
- Trends in Number of COVID-19 Cases and Deaths in the US Reported to CDC, by State/Territory
- Coronavirus (COVID-19) Vaccinations, Our World in Data (Number of vaccines administered)
- Coronavirus Vaccine Tracker, New York Times (Progress of vaccine trials)
See also
- Documenting America's Path to Recovery
- School responses to the coronavirus pandemic by state (2021-2022 academic year)
- School responses to the coronavirus pandemic by state (2020-2021 academic year)
- South Dakota’s responses to the coronavirus pandemic
- COVID-19 vaccine distribution by state
- Travel restrictions by state
- Federal government responses to the coronavirus pandemic
Footnotes
- ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "Number of operating public schools and districts, student membership, teachers, and pupil/teacher ratio, by state or jurisdiction: School year 2019–20," accessed September 10, 2021
- ↑ EducationWeek, "Map: Where Were Schools Required to Be Open for the 2020-21 School Year?," June 14, 2021
- ↑ To read more about Burbio's school disruption tracking, click here
- ↑ Burbio, "Burbio's K-12 School Opening Tracker," accessed August 27, 2021
- ↑ Burbio rated South Dakota's in-person index at 100. To read more about Burbio's school opening tracker, click here. To read more about Burbio's methodology, click here.
- ↑ Burbio, "Burbio's K-12 School Opening Tracker," accessed Oct. 8, 2021
- ↑ Burbio rated South Dakota's in-person index between 80-100. To read more about Burbio's school opening tracker, click here. To read more about Burbio's methodology, click here.
- ↑ Burbio, "Burbio's K-12 School Opening Tracker," accessed Oct. 8, 2021
- ↑ U.S. News & World Report, "Governor Pushes Schools to Remain Open, Disparages Masks," July 28, 2020
- ↑ South Dakota Department of Education, "Starting Well 2020," accessed August 13, 2020
- ↑ Sioux Falls Argus Leader, "Schools to remain closed for rest of academic year: What that means for Sioux Falls," April 6, 2020
- ↑ News Center 1, "Noem: SD schools close until May 1," March 24, 2020
- ↑ Yankton Daily Press & Dakotan, "UPDATE 4:19 p.m.: SD School Closure Extended To Next Week," March 17, 2020
- ↑ On Sept. 2, 2021 the ban was temporarily suspended by court action. An appeals court upheld the ban on Sept. 10.
- ↑ Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) ended the statewide school mask requirement on Feb. 28, 2022.
- ↑ On Sept. 13, 2021 the ban was temporarily suspended by court action for all schools. On Jan. 25, 2022, the ban was partially reinstated.
- ↑ Oct. 26, 2021 - School districts could be exempt from the school mask requirement if they followed CDC quarantine guidance
- ↑ Dec. 7, 2021 - School districts could be exempt from the school mask requirement if they met one of the three following criteria: 1) the county vaccination rate was 80% or higher, 2) 80% of school staff and students were vaccinated, or 3) COVID-19 transmission in the county was considered moderate or low for 14 straight days.
- ↑ Oct. 1 - Schools could become exempt from the school mask requirement when at least 80% of students were vaccinated
- ↑ On Nov. 10, 2021 the ban was suspended by court action. An appeals court upheld the ban on Dec. 1.
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 21.2 21.3 21.4 21.5 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.