Page 7 - Mid Valley Times 10-22-20 E-edition

Thursday, October 22, 2020
KCUSD welcomes back TK-6 students
The View From Here
I looked down at the flip flops I was wear-
ing.
My feet
Friday, Oct. 16 marked the second day back to “on cam- pus instruction” for TK - 6 students in the Kings Canyon Unified School District.
KCUSD announced on Oct. 2 that they’d been approved for a waiver allowing students to return to in person instruc- tion.
St. La Salle Catholic School was one of the first schools in the Reedley area to return stu- dents to in-person instruction following their approval back on Sept. 28.
The California Department of Public Health announced back on July 17 that schools in counties with lowered CO- VID-19 cases would be al- lowed to apply for on campus instruction waivers.
Since Fresno County had a lowered number of COVID-19 cases, schools in this area were able to apply for these waivers allowing students to return.
Even with the safe return however, Renee Delport, the district's public information officer, said the rules from the
SEE SCHOOL on page A8
were cold.
I am not
sure what
I expected,
this was
mid October after all.
How did I think it would be okay to wear these san- dals so late in the season.
“I think I’m done with sandals,” I said to Renee Delport, the public informa- tion officer with the Kings Canyon Unified School Dis- trict, as she began our tour of the campus.
She laughed and replied, yes, it is so cold out today.
It was early in the morn- ing, just after 7:30 am on Friday, Oct. 16 and I was at T.L. Reed to cover the school’s second day back to "on campus learning."
“For the kids who have been here before it’s almost like muscle memory,” Re- nee said. “They know that’s where they are suppose to sit, so now it’s changed a little, now they can only sit on the designated sticker, so there is some retraining involved.”
As we walked around the campus I noticed how many students were not worried about their masks. No one was trying to pull them off. Everyone was following the six feet distance rule. Many of the students just had a look of relief to have some type of normalcy back in their daily lives.
We walked through sev- eral classrooms. Students waited outside the class- rooms waited to be called in.
A young girl was called in and before sitting at her desk, she walked over to the sink to wash her hands.
Delport said all students are required to wash their hands before sitting at their desks. Classrooms are also wiped down between ses- sions and are then fogged each night to ensure extra protection.
“So many of our kids are doing so good,” she said. “You’ll look around and they’re not messing around.”
She was right. I was im- pressed at the order taking place at T.L. Reed. I spoke to Rick McCollum after ward. He said teachers were also just as happy to be back.
“Just the overall excite- ment and they are anxious to finally work with their students face to face,” Mc- Collum said.
I wish all the returning students good luck. Hope- fully this is one of the first steps in all of us returning to what we remember as “normal.”
Juanita Adame
Photo by Juanita Adame / Mid Valley Times
Rick McCollum, T.L. Reed K-8 principal greeted parents and students at the campus gate on the morning of Oct. 16. McCollum said many students were excited to be back to school.
By Juanita Adame
Mid Valley Times
As the sun began to rise over T.L. Reed K-8 School on the morning of Oct. 16, the campus— which had been empty for exactly 7 months
due to the COVID-19 pandem- ic— was now bustling with activity.
“They’re so happy to be back, it’s hard to see smiles behind their masks but we can still see there is excitement in their faces,” said Rick McCol-
lum, T.L. Reed principal. “The most difficult thing for us is our kindergarten stu- dents, parent’s are not able to walk them to class and they’re still a little concerned, but oth- er than that, it’s been really
great so far.”
Adventist Health welcomes new pediatrician
Contributed
The Adventist Health Medical Office in Reedley welcome board-certified pe- diatrician Neha Vashishtha, MD, to its medical staff.
Vashishtha has practiced medicine for nearly ten years. She has cared for patients from birth through early adulthood and has provided services such as newborn check-ups, wellness checks, school physicals, sick visits, chronic care and more.
“As a pediatrician, I have the unique opportunity to en- hance the health of the next generation as well as establish
long-term relationships with my patients and families,” she said. “I am passionate about promoting and contrib- uting to health and wellness and enjoy practicing preven- tative medicine as this gives me the opportunity to be part of my patients’ lives, provide compassionate care and edu- cation, and serve the commu- nity.”
Vashishtha earned her medical degree from Kastur- ba Medical College in India and completed a residency in pediatrics at the University of South Alabama in Mobile.
Certified by the Ameri- can Board of Pediatrics and
a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics, she has published in peer-re- viewed journals and present- ed at medical conferences. She is fluent in English, Pun- jabi, Hindi and Urdu.
Vashishtha’s interests in- clude spending time on the beach and hiking with her husband and their children.
She is accepting new pa- tients and may be reached at Adventist Health Medical Office. For more information on available appointments, contact (559)391-3100 or visit ReedleyCare.com.
First ever virtual 'Diaper Derby' a success in Reedley
Photo of the week
Photo Contributed / Danny Jimenez
Benjamin Vasquez, 10 months, turned to pose for the camera during the virtual "Diaper Derby" competition in Reedley. The event was held in a small capacity and was broadcast online. (More photos on page A8)
Contributed
A photo of Adam Douhan ready for his first day of "in person instruction" at Alta Elementary School as part of the new Dual Immersion Program at KCUSD was sent in by Carla Martinez. Have a photo you'd like featured? Email juanita@midvalleypub- lishing.com.
Contributed
Dr. Neha Vashishtha, MD.