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May 6, 2021
ELBERT COUNTY, COLORADO
A publication of
ElbertCountyNews.net
VOLUME 126 | ISSUE 12
Planning volunteer quits over light issue Dark-sky advocate leaves post with Elizabeth after getting no traction toward goal BY CHANCY J. GATLIN-ANDERSON SPECIAL TO COLORADO COMMUNITY MEDIA
Elizabeth High School.
antine carousel,” said Bissonette. “Currently, if a person is sick or has been in contact with someone who has tested positive, they of course stay home. We do contract tracing and basically the only people who don’t come to school are those who either have been exposed or are sick.” Under current guidelines, students in contact with an exposed student would be sent home to quarantine. Many have returned back to school, according to Bissonette, only to be sent back on quarantine a short time later, resulting in the “quarantine carousel,” which makes it more difficult for students to stay focused and learn.
Edwin Wiley, former Town of Elizabeth planning committee member, presented his Dark Skies Initiative to the Elizabeth Board of Trustees April 13, but was ultimately met with disinterest. Wiley has approached town officials with his requests several times. After the latest rejection, Wiley resigned from his volunteer position on the Elizabeth planning committee. Wiley expressed his frustration with the trustees and their lack of initiative in the reduction of light pollution in Elbert County. “I am frustrated with the lack of productivity and vision of the board of trustees,” said Wiley. “Members are facing internal division, which is negatively impacting the overall well-being of the county.” Wiley’s Elbert County Dark Skies Initiative is a splinter effort in association with Dark Skies Colorado, an organization that promotes dark sky preservation, education and experience. In his
SEE SCHOOL, P5
SEE PLANNING, P17
COURTESY OF GOOGLE MAPS STREET VIEW
School leaders want quarantine guidelines lifted Elizabeth School District superintendent among signers of letter to CDPHE BY TABATHA STEWART SPECIAL TO COLORADO COMMUNITY MEDIA
Superintendents from 12 Colorado school districts penned a letter to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment April 26, urging the department to rescind current school quarantine standards, citing low spread numbers in their districts from the classroom. “What we’re trying to do, as superintendents, is to remove the
quarantine for the schools,” said Elizabeth School District Superintendent Douglas Bissonette. “Our schools have been safer than other places in our community throughout the school year. Ninetynine percent of kids we sent home under the quarantine policy never caught the virus.” Bissonette said the school district has done a fine job of keeping COVID-19 at bay in the school district, and have followed strict safety protocols within the schools. The Elizabeth schools have been open to in-person learning all year long, with the exception of one week after Thanksgiving when the high school went to remote learning. “We’re trying to avoid the quar-
INSIDE: VOICES: PAGE 8 | LIFE: PAGE 13 | CALENDAR: PAGE 11
POLIS PROMOTES EQUITY CLINICS
State emphasizes efforts to bring COVID vaccines to everyone P3