July 30, 2020

Can schools reopen safely during a pandemic? Dr. Brandon Guthrie discusses other countries’ reopening strategies and lessons learned

Since May 2020, the COVID-19 Literature Situation Report, an initiative led by the UW MetaCenter for Pandemic Preparedness and Global Health Security and START Center focused on the needs of public health professionals in Washington State, has released daily newsletters that provide a succinct summary of the latest scientific literature related to the COVID-19 pandemic.  Behind the scenes, Drs. Brandon Guthrie and Jennifer Ross of the Department of Global Health are leading a team of faculty and students from the Schools of Public Health and Medicine to release these reports every day.  The report includes brief, concise summarizes of 10-15 articles that they judge to have the highest public health relevance, along with additional links to pertinent commentaries and other resources.

In July, the team compiled a list of countries and their school reopening strategies for the WA State Department of Health.  As school districts across the U.S. struggle with how, or even if, to reopen schools in time for the new academic year, these reports offer lessons learned from other countries that may inform plans for school reopening.

Dr. Guthrie and his team are quoted and interviewed in several national news outlets to discuss the data.  Read the full stories below.

How to Reopen Schools: What Science and Other Countries Teach Us – The New York Times (July 12, 2020)

School reopenings: what can the US learn from other countries’ experiences? – The Guardian (July 14, 2020)

The key lesson from school openings abroad: Contain the virus – Vox (July 15, 2020)

Schools in other countries have opened during the pandemic, are there any lessons we can learn from overseas? – WCCO-TV CBS affiliate (July 16, 2020)

Can Schools Open Safely During A Pandemic? Looking Abroad For Answers – NPR On Point (July 22, 2020)

What the science says about reopening schools: Experts call for nuanced approach, based on data – GeekWire (July 22, 2020)

Some Countries Reopened Schools. What Did They Learn About Kids and Covid? – Wired (July 27, 2020)

Why Is There No Consensus About Reopening Schools? – The New York Times Magazine (July 29, 2020)

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