Although preschools in Alberta are allowed to reopen, many in Airdrie are choosing to keep their doors closed.
On May 29, Alberta's Minister of Children's Services Rebecca Schulz announced preschools in the province were cleared to resume operations June 1. However, the announcement took many local programs by surprise, prompting them to remain closed.
"It’s interesting the government just decided to throw this at everyone with such short notice and expect people could open [within four days]," said Richelle Rothecker, director and teacher at Fuzzy Pickles Preschool.
In her announcement, Schulz said preschools that reopen must operate under new health and safety guidelines. These include performing daily temperature checks on students, screening employees and removing toys and structures that cannot be easily sanitized.
- INTERACTIVE MAP: See the latest COVID-19 statistics across Canada by province/territory on our interactive map.
“The guidelines were developed with [Alberta’s chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw] and will be more stringent than before, but preschools will be able to operate over the summer, providing a part-time childcare option that will also nurture those tiny brains," Schulz tweeted.
Considering the preschool calendar wraps up the third week of June, Rothecker said it wasn’t worth calling every one of her clients to see if they would be interested in three weeks’ worth of in-class programming.
"We had stopped taking our clients’ money come April 1, so we do not have them technically paying anymore," she said.
According to the Alberta government's guidelines, preschools that reopen must limit capacity to 10 people. This includes staff and and children. Rothecker said this also presents challenges for Fuzzy Pickles.
"We’re only allowed up to eight children and we have a maximum capacity in our classes of 20," she said. "How do you choose who would come and who would not? The logistics of it in that way aren’t fair to our clients or anyone else."
Still, Rothecker said Schulz’s announcement is positive nonetheless, as it means preschools can prepare for the fall with more confidence they will be able to operate as per usual.
"We’re really focusing on that and hoping that over the summer, restrictions will keep lifting," she said.
She said registration for the fall has continued to fill up in recent weeks.
“[That] means our community is also hopeful these kids will have an important piece of their routine back," Rothecker said. “We can’t wait to get back into the classroom and we’re working hard to stay up to date on the Alberta relaunch strategy. We hope that we will be able to provide the best, safest environment for kids and staff once we’re up and running again."
Like other preschools in the province, Fuzzy Pickles was mandated to close its doors March 15. The preschool – which Rothecker said has operated in Airdrie for more than 35 years – offers classes to more than 60 children.
Another Airdrie program that did not reopen June 1 was Little Sprouts Preschool. Owner Tracy Young said the downtown-based centre transitioned to offering "virtual preschool" in April and she has already developed an online curriculum for the last three weeks of class.
"Converting it all into an in-class format would have been very difficult," she said. "Also, the limit on the number of children or people in a room is 10, and our classes average around 15 kids. I would have to cut our classes in half. How would I decide who gets to come?"
Young added Little Sprouts offers summer programs, but will likely continue to do things online this summer.
While Little Sprouts and Fuzzy Pickles have been able to weather the COVID-19 storm, one long-standing preschool in Airdrie has had to close its doors for good due to the effects of the pandemic. Kids Quest Preschool was unable to receive a discount on its lease during the pandemic, according to staff, and has had to close permanently. According to a letter Kids Quest sent to parents, the facility operated in Airdrie for 27 years.
Scott Strasser, AirdrieToday.com
Follow me on Twitter @scottstrasser19
