COVID-19 risk index graphic for schools

"Parents and teachers deserve a clear assessment of the Covid-19 risks," said Emanuel.

This is might be handy as the community prepares to make decisions about the school year. Ezekiel J. Emanuel, vice provost of global initiatives and professor of medical ethics and health policy at the University of Pennsylvania, Saskia Popescu an infectious disease epidemiologist, and James Phillips, chief of disaster medicine at George Washington University’s School of Medicine and Health Sciences, created this risk index for schools for the New York Times. "Parents and teachers deserve a clear assessment of the Covid-19 risks," said Emanuel.

"To create safe schools is much more complex than just having students wear face masks and sit physically distanced from one another in class. We must ensure that all five of the core school-based activities — transportation, time in the classroom, mealtimes, gym and extracurricular activities — are safe.

To do this, we created a school risk index to assess the dangers and offer recommendations to reduce the chance of spreading the virus, not on…