LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — The Clark County School District canceled two days of school after a staff shortage due to COVID-19 cases increasing.
The sudden closure is leaving some parents scrambling to figure out childcare, but one local pediatrician says the closure is necessary.
“I think it should have been done sooner, actually. I think it should have been done a lot sooner, but these things take time because there’s a lot of steps involved," said Atousa Ghaneian, pediatrician and owner of Healthy Kids Pediatrics.
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Ghaneian says the closure should have been done sooner due to the amount of COVID-19 cases surging in Southern Nevada.
“We knew that the omicron is spreading quickly, we knew that it’s highly contagious and we knew that a mass number of people were getting together for the holidays, and we saw it within the first week of school opening," Ghaneian said. "We saw the numbers go up exponentially, and as time went on it just kept going up and up, right after the holiday break."
Some parents were upset they did not receive more of a notice about the school closures and said they just want schools to stick to one plan.
“It’s crazy because it went from computer school to going back to class, now they are off for four days. It's just like can we get a steady schedule or something? Something has to get figured out," one parent said.
With CCSD taking a 5-day pause, we'll be offering our Battle Born Kids (ages 5-11) and Teens (ages 12-14) programs to assist working parents. The all-day programs are available January 14, 17 and 18. $27 per day per child. See full details and register: https://t.co/qD4OOfUSLH pic.twitter.com/cUNVOFiCmq
— Henderson Sports&Rec (@HendSportandRec) January 12, 2022
CCSD scheduled two days to make up for the closure. Feb. 7 and April 25 were previously scheduled as staff development and contingency days, but will now have school in session.
“So I think the break would allow the sick to recover and get better. The teachers that are out, the bus drivers that are out to get better and come back better and be able to resume and reset," Ghaneian said.
Henderson Sports and Recreation is also offering a program to assist working parents during the closure. The program charges $27 per child per day.
