School board to vote on 2022-23 calendar, get COVID-19 update at Feb. 28 meeting

The Eden Prairie School Board will consider approval of the final 2022-23 school calendar at its regular meeting Monday, Feb. 28.

The board previewed a draft of the calendar at its Jan. 24 meeting. The approval consideration is bundled in the Superintendent’s Consent Agenda, along with approval of a preliminary 2023-24 calendar.

COVID-19 update

The meeting agenda also includes an update from Superintendent Josh Swanson on the district’s COVID-19 Safe Learning Plan.

The district abruptly ended its mandatory face-covering requirement for all students and staff on Feb. 17 amid declining COVID-19 cases. That requirement was instituted in late December 2021 in advance of students’ return from winter break and was extended beyond its original Jan. 27 end date to Feb. 25.

Until winter break, only students in Pre-K through 6^th grade were required to wear face coverings indoors.

COVID-19 cases in Eden Prairie, as well as Hennepin County, have trended down significantly since it peaked at 316.1 cases per 10,000 residents in the two-week period ending Jan. 17.

That number was reported to be 42.7 cases per 10,000 residents in the two-week period ending Feb. 14, the lowest since early October 2021, according to the Hennepin County COVID-19 Public Dashboard.

Eden Prairie Schools’ COVID-19 Dashboard reported 92 positive cases in students and staff over the two-week period ending Feb. 18. The district topped out at 800 positive cases during the two-week period ending Jan. 14 and has been declining since.

The board will also meet in closed session after the regular meeting for a safety and security update, according to the agenda.

The school board meeting begins at 6 p.m. at the district’s Administrative Services Center, 8100 School Road. The public is invited to attend the meeting in person. The meeting is also available on Zoom.