By Dianne Anderson

How to avoid COVID-19 and what to study in their distance learning assignment is about the last thing on the minds of some growing teens these days.

Mostly, they’re just trying to find some food.

Edwin Johnson, founder and CEO of CHORDS, works with about a hundred teens and youth at local schools and districts, including youth at juvenile hall. In recent weeks, he has seen a lot of students on the streets, and they’re not wearing masks.

He’s been trying to push the word out through all of his social media to stay safe.

But, if the threat of catching coronavirus or giving it to someone else doesn’t make people take proper precautions, maybe San Bernardino County’s health order of $1,000 fine or 90 days in jail or both may make more people pay attention.

Right now, Johnson’s friend, at 32 years old, is fighting for his life in an induced coma. His friend has asthma. As the pandemic continues, he wonders what kind of overall impact it will have on the community.

For whatever reason, part of what he’s hearing from his youth is that parents are not accessing food distribution sites, or driving through for school supplies or packets. There isn’t enough food at home, and hungry growing boys aren’t necessarily thinking about COVID-19 as much as their next meal.

“For some people, I don’t think it’s real for the struggle. It’s like, man we’re more worried about what we’re going to eat,” he said.

There are some drive up opportunities, but the students he works with say their mothers do not have a car.

“There’s no safety net for them, there’s no food. They can’t get into the schools. They’re pretty much in the streets,” he said.

Through all his social media outreach, Johnson has been trying to push safety information and where to get resources. He is also hearing that high school seniors are not accessing school assignment packets.

“It’s because they don’t live at the address anymore. A lot of emergency cards aren’t updated, so kids don’t know what to do about homework. It’s a mess right now,” he said.

Many parents are at a loss for getting services and answers about help for students, but some schools and districts are working on all fronts to help bridge the digital divide that may prevent students from accessing remote learning.

Craig Petinak, spokesperson for the Riverside County Office of Education, said their districts are using spring break to get teachers more proficient with professional development and training. They’re also updating, disinfecting and deploying Chromebooks for use during the rest of the school year.

Some districts placed orders for thousands of Chromebooks and mobile hotspots to provide internet access, among them Riverside USD. For several years, he said many districts in Riverside County have been “1-to-1” districts that provide a device for every student to use at home, including Perris Union High School District, Menifee Union School District and others.

For parents whose students do not have access to the tools they need to participate in remote learning, he said they should contact their students’ principal to work on a distance learning plan to maintain continuity of education for their children.

Google Classroom or Zoom are being utilized, and educators are using a wide variety of tools that may vary by grade level, depending on the type of assignment, the teacher, or school district policy.

On the question of whether students may go to summer school to catch up or be automatically pushed to the next grade level, Petinak noted that the county’s public health department hasn’t issued its decision yet whether school will be able to re-open for summer school.

The closure has been extended to June 19 in Riverside County, subject to change based on the state of the pandemic at that time. The first school closure notice in the county was on March 13, which is near the end of the third quarter for most districts.

“Many districts are using that as a checkpoint in the academic year for reporting grades and determining status for graduation requirements and grade level assignments for next year,” Petinak said. “Generally speaking, students should not expect to be penalized for a pandemic that closed schools and suspended access to their education.”

For more information on resources for parents and students to cope with the crisis, see

For more information on resources for parents and students to cope with the crisis, see
http://www.rcoe.us

To see more about San Bernardino County’s health order, see

http://wp.sbcounty.gov/cao/countywire/?p=5854

To see Riverside public health information, see http://www.rivcoph.org