{"id":63313,"date":"2021-10-04T21:20:07","date_gmt":"2021-10-04T21:20:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/uncategorized\/2021\/10\/04\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T14:03:04","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T14:03:04","slug":"dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/pay-benefits\/2021\/10\/04\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\/","title":{"rendered":"DoD schools worldwide navigate the pandemic with mostly open classrooms, low infection rates"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

As school districts around the country have struggled to keep their students and staff safe while also educating the children during the pandemic, the Department of Defense Education Activity has been navigating outbreaks around the world \u2014 while mostly staying open for in-person learning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Education Activity operates 160 schools in 11 foreign countries, seven states, Guam and Puerto Rico. About 64,000 children of military and DoD civilians attend these schools.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because of DoDEA\u2019s early response to the pandemic, infection rates have remained low, said Tom Brady, director of the DoDEA schools, in an interview with Military Times. In the last school year, from August 2020 to May 2021, the COVID infection rate was 0.8 percent among DoDEA students worldwide for the entire year, and 3.7 percent for staff members. Following guidance on safety protocols from DoD and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, school officials pushed to keep schools open for in-person learning<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One staff member, Pamela Harris<\/a>, a Fort Knox Middle\/High School guidance counselor, died from COVID on Sept. 15, 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt was a tragedy,\u201d Brady said. \u201cShe was there for so many years and was very beloved. She had contracted it at a church function. There have been no other fatalities that I know of.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

None of DoDEA\u2019s students contracted COVID at school or on the bus, Brady said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In early 2020, as COVID rolled across the globe, DoD schools moved to remote learning for the last several months of the 2019-2020 academic year, starting with schools in South Korea. Within 72 hours after the physical schools shut down in South Korea, there were enough Google classrooms and professional development resources so that students were back on their computers at home, learning with their classroom teachers, Brady said. Officials took that model to Italy, Germany and eventually to all locations as physical school buildings were closed down because of COVID-19.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That all changed by the beginning of school year 2020-2021, when the goal was to have all schools open for in-person learning, unless the installation\u2019s Health Protection Condition forced them into remote learning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019ve learned that our students were so eager to get back to school, to be with their classmates and to learn, that when [they were told] \u2018you\u2019re going to wear a mask, you\u2019re going to be six feet apart, and you\u2019re going to eat lunch all over the school,\u2019 they did that so willingly,\u201d Brady said. He described it as \u201cwilling compliance.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By March 2021, 99 percent of DoDEA schools were operating in person, he said. The only schools that were operating remotely were the two in Bahrain, because the kingdom had a severe COVID outbreak. This fall, 100 percent of DoDEA schools started the year with in-person instruction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe best way for students to learn is face to face,\u201d Brady said. \u201cCOVID-19 certainly throws a wrench into that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Throughout the past school year DoDEA schools around the world were shifting back and forth from in-person learning to remote learning. Those numbers converged in January 2021, with about an equal number of schools operating in person versus remote, mirroring increases in COVID in communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
While following guidance from DoD and the CDC for COVID-19 safety protocols, the Department of Defense Education Activity pushed to keep schools open for in-person learning in school year 2020-2021. This chart shows the frequent shifting of the worldwide school system as schools were affected by local community infection rates. (DoDEA)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI can\u2019t say enough about the teachers<\/a>. Look at how remarkably flexible they had to be,\u201d Brady said. \u201cIn school, mitigating to ensure that everything was right, and teaching. And then at a moment\u2019s notice, back to a remote computer. It is very, very difficult to teach remotely, with 20 kids on the screen. It\u2019s just a challenge, and they met that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The classrooms were at the forefront, but there was a lot of effort at the local, regional and headquarters level to support those classrooms. \u201cThere\u2019s no success in COVID-19 at the end of the day,\u201d Brady said, but he described \u201ca remarkable professional reaction of taking care of kids.\u201d Administrators were \u201c24\/7 COVID, contact tracing, keeping local commanders informed,\u201d Brady said. \u201cThey lived and breathed it. \u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And it was \u2014 and is \u2014 an all-in effort at DoDEA headquarters, where officials put together detailed guidance and worked closely with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for the most up-to-date information on how to keep students and staff safe, Brady said. Headquarters staff put together guidance for principals and staff in the summer of 2020; it\u2019s now in the seventh updated version. Virtually every division in headquarters worked on issues and guidelines based on CDC and DoD guidance, ranging from safety measures such as cleaning and social distancing, logistics in getting needed cleaning and other supplies, standards and curriculum, the DoDEA Virtual School, special education needs and more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Headquarters staff also has been in close communication with schools to answer any questions and to address any needs, Brady said. \u201cIt was a remarkably complex but very well-organized response to something that we had never done before,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

DoDEA officials at all levels \u2014 schools, regions and headquarters \u2014 have been working with local commands and military officials up the chain, including public health and military medical officials. \u201cThat working together was remarkable to keep children face to face,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf you look across the United States, I don\u2019t think there\u2019s another school system that had the resources and the partnerships and the focus on taking care of kids that we were blessed to have,\u201d Brady said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

DoDEA\u2019s safety protocols resulted in low levels of viral transmission in schools, said Wendy Cooley, DoDEA\u2019s chief of capabilities and initiatives, the division that has been the central point for all things COVID.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe low infection rates coupled with DoDEA\u2019s ability to provide uninterrupted instruction serve as evidence of the efficacy of this plan and of DoDEA\u2019s unwavering commitment to the total force and military mission readiness,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

DoDEA officials and advocates acknowledge it\u2019s difficult to compare worldwide DoDEA schools and students with other school systems in the U.S. when it comes to COVID-related issues, and comparable statistics aren\u2019t available.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s such a localized issue, when it comes to where DoDEA schools are located. You also have to look at the COVID infection rates in the areas,\u201d said Nicole Russell, government relations deputy director for the National Military Family Association. \u201cBut you\u2019d be hard pressed to find someone who would argue with the fact that in-person instruction is probably ideal for most students.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other results from DoDEA\u2019s year and a half of dealing with COVID:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2666 In August, 2020, 58 percent of DoDEA schools were open for in-person learning. \u201cThat was when only 24 percent of the 100 largest U.S. school districts made full in-person instruction available at the start of that school year,\u201d said Cooley. During that first semester, DoDEA hit a high of 87 percent of schools open for in-person learning; by March of 2021, 99 percent of DoDEA schools were open for in-person learning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2666 This fall, DoDEA schools opened with 100-percent in-person instruction, said Cooley. There was one minor shift to remote for a short time in Sicily, where a school had an air-conditioning problem. That shift is an example of how COVID has shown that productivity at the school level, and service from the region and headquarters level, can continue in these situations, she said. \u201cIt doesn\u2019t have to be COVID. We\u2019re prepped and poised for fill-in-the-blank the next public emergency,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2666 DoDEA students didn\u2019t experience the drops in test scores in end-of-year assessments, compared to pre-COVID, that many of their counterparts did in schools across the U.S., officials said. Among DoDEA students, \u201csome groups saw slight increases in results for English language arts\/literacy in school year 2020-2021, while most maintained steady achievement from school year 2018-2019,\u201d said DoDEA spokesman Will Griffin. The tests weren\u2019t administered in the spring of 2020 because of the pandemic. Students held steady in math, with some slight gains among all students with disabilities and in sixth-grade math. There were significant increases in geometry (6 percent) and Algebra 2 (7 percent), compared to that previous assessment cycle, he said. About 95 percent of DoDEA students participated in the end-of-year assessments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

PSAT scores \u201ctell a similar story of extraordinary achievement given the backdrop of the pandemic,\u201d Griffin said. \u201cDoDEA students exceeded expectations again, with steady progress across the board in reading and writing and math in line with historic PSAT scores.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s difficult to do comparisons with other states and school districts, because of the different tests and percentages of students who took the tests, Brady said. But the DoDEA results \u201cspeaks volumes to the face-to-face instruction and the remarkable teachers and principals we have,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2666 A new DoD Inspector General report confirmed that DoDEA has developed and implemented controls based on CDC and DoD guidance related to preventing the spread of COVID-19. Auditors reviewed a sample of 15 schools from each of the DoDEA regions \u2014 Europe, the Pacific and the Americas. As a result of the DoDEA guidance, the 15 DoDEA schools reviewed \u201cprovided staff, students and parents information and training on effective hygiene, social distancing, cleaning and identifying the signs of COVID-19 to reduce the risk of COVID-19 spread for students, teachers and staff members,\u201d the report states. Auditors didn\u2019t provide any recommendations to DoDEA for improvements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2666 That low infection rate got DoDEA noticed. DoDEA experts worked with the COVID Collaborative, a group formed on behalf of the Biden administration to help provide some school-level research for the CDC, Cooley said. They sought input from DoDEA, she said, \u201cbecause we have those incredibly low infection rates while remaining in person.\u201d That led to some work with the CDC, when DoDEA was invited to provide input, through official channels at the Pentagon, she said. Examples of that input included looking at the model for physical distancing \u201cfrom a realistic standpoint in schools with class sizes that would or would not be feasible,\u201d she said. DoDEA benefited from learning the science behind CDC\u2019s work. DoDEA also provided input to Department of Education officials, she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2666 Overall, about 75 percent of DoDEA staff members have been fully vaccinated. The numbers are higher in the Europe and Pacific regions, with about 90 percent vaccinated. Soon all staff will be required to get vaccinated, based on the executive order from President Joe Biden requiring federal workers to be vaccinated. Staff members have previously been voluntarily providing information to DoDEA officials about whether they were vaccinated, but the information wasn\u2019t required, Brady said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Federal Education Association \u201cis pleased to see the administration taking the health and safety of its DoDEA educators and students seriously, while seeking to get as many educators vaccinated as possible,\u201d said FEA spokesman Gary Hritz. He said the union applauds the National Education Association for stressing the need for resources to ensure educators return safely to the classroom to educate their students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe also agree with the importance of bargaining over vaccination policies, so that employees have a say in the process and so that exemptions for specific reasons, such as medical or religious exemptions, are fully addressed,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
AGANA HEIGHTS, Guam (Oct. 26, 2020) \u2013 All Department of Defense Education Activity Guam schools resumed in-classroom instruction, Oct. 26, following the declaration of Health Protection Condition Bravo by Commander, Joint Region Marianas. Guam High School students are pictured wearing face masks and maintaining a safe physical distance. In the return to face-to-face instruction, all DoDEA Guam faculty, staff and students continue to adhere to health and safety guidelines established by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (U.S. Navy photo by Shaina O\u2019Neal)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

As more information from the CDC has emerged, DoDEA has moved, with its contact tracing, from having to shut down the physical school and shift to remote, to looking at classrooms and grade levels that may have been affected. Cooley said. For example if a third-grade student or teacher has COVID, the trace team examines who was affected, and the third-grade class or a few classes might shift to remote, rather than the whole school.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Remote learning, which is what DoDEA students were doing in the spring of 2020, happens if local COVID-19 infections escalate and the installation goes to Health Protection Condition C.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019re tied to the rates of community spread, which is the HPCon status,\u201d Cooley said. Students work on their computers from home, connecting with their local classroom teacher.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s separate from the DoDEA Virtual School. For more than a decade, DoDEA has operated a fully accredited virtual high school for grades nine to 12, where students overseas take classes with teachers who are in a variety of locations. As COVID rolled out in 2020, DoDEA expanded the Virtual School to include grades K to 12, recognizing the COVID-related concerns that some teachers, students and their families have about returning in person.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

About 12,500 students in grades K-12 enrolled in the virtual school option in the fall of 2020, Brady said. In the second semester, the number of K-12 students decreased to about 5,000, and there are now about 800 K-12 students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Officials are now assessing what lessons learned and innovations are worth carrying into the future, Cooley said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve all, throughout this pandemic, learned to better use digital collaboration tools, cloud-based collaboration tools, video conferencing platforms that help us sufficiently and sustainably fulfill tasks that were previously only conducted face to face,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cooley has seen the pandemic from the ground as well as headquarters level. In January 2020, when COVID started in the Pacific, she was the DoDEA chief of staff in Japan, \u201cso, I was already working a lot of the COVID [issues] as chief of staff over there,\u201d she said. She started in her role at headquarters on March 16, 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Russell, of the National Military Family Association, said she is glad to see DoDEA and a number of other school districts looking at lessons learned \u2014 while noting we\u2019re still clearly in a pandemic. \u201cHow do we come out of this and continue to teach our children in the best possible way we can, while maintaining a safe learning environment?\u201d she said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Less than 1 percent of DoDEA students got COVID during the 2020-2021 school year, despite largely remaining open for in-person instruction.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":94442,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":15,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":[]},"categories":[101,23,92,25,15,18],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3302],"class_list":["post-63313","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-daily-news-roundup","category-home","category-left-column","category-newsletters","category-pay-benefits","category-spouse"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"PNSTN2EFCBHMDGEOWSZFRJB5WI","arc_canonical_url":"\/pay-benefits\/2021\/10\/04\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"\nDoD schools worldwide navigate the pandemic with mostly open classrooms, low infection rates - Marine Corps Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Less than 1 percent of DoDEA students got COVID during the 2020-2021 school year, despite largely remaining open for in-person instruction.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"DoD schools worldwide navigate the pandemic with mostly open classrooms, low infection rates\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Less than 1 percent of DoDEA students got COVID during the 2020-2021 school year, despite largely remaining open for in-person instruction.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/pay-benefits\/2021\/10\/04\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Marine Corps Times\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-10-04T21:20:07+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-08-08T14:03:04+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Karen Jowers\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Karen Jowers\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"12 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\n\t \"@context\": \"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\n\t \"@graph\": [\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"Article\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/pay-benefits\\\/2021\\\/10\\\/04\\\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\\\/#article\",\n\t \"isPartOf\": {\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/pay-benefits\\\/2021\\\/10\\\/04\\\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\\\/\"\n\t },\n\t \"author\": {\n\t \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\"\n\t },\n\t \"headline\": \"DoD schools worldwide navigate the pandemic with mostly open classrooms, low infection rates\",\n\t \"datePublished\": \"2021-10-04T21:20:07+00:00\",\n\t \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-08T14:03:04+00:00\",\n\t \"mainEntityOfPage\": {\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/pay-benefits\\\/2021\\\/10\\\/04\\\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\\\/\"\n\t },\n\t \"wordCount\": 2378,\n\t \"commentCount\": 0,\n\t \"publisher\": {\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/#organization\"\n\t },\n\t \"image\": {\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/pay-benefits\\\/2021\\\/10\\\/04\\\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t },\n\t \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/Masked-student-at-Stuttgart.jpg.jpg\",\n\t \"articleSection\": [\n\t \"Daily News Roundup\",\n\t \"Home\",\n\t \"Left Column\",\n\t \"Newsletters\",\n\t \"Pay & Benefits\",\n\t \"Spouses\"\n\t ],\n\t \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t \"potentialAction\": [\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"CommentAction\",\n\t \"name\": \"Comment\",\n\t \"target\": [\n\t \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/pay-benefits\\\/2021\\\/10\\\/04\\\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\\\/#respond\"\n\t ]\n\t }\n\t ]\n\t },\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"WebPage\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/pay-benefits\\\/2021\\\/10\\\/04\\\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\\\/\",\n\t \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/pay-benefits\\\/2021\\\/10\\\/04\\\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\\\/\",\n\t \"name\": \"DoD schools worldwide navigate the pandemic with mostly open classrooms, low infection rates - Marine Corps Times\",\n\t \"isPartOf\": {\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/#website\"\n\t },\n\t \"primaryImageOfPage\": {\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/pay-benefits\\\/2021\\\/10\\\/04\\\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t },\n\t \"image\": {\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/pay-benefits\\\/2021\\\/10\\\/04\\\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t },\n\t \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/Masked-student-at-Stuttgart.jpg.jpg\",\n\t \"datePublished\": \"2021-10-04T21:20:07+00:00\",\n\t \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-08T14:03:04+00:00\",\n\t \"description\": \"Less than 1 percent of DoDEA students got COVID during the 2020-2021 school year, despite largely remaining open for in-person instruction.\",\n\t \"breadcrumb\": {\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/pay-benefits\\\/2021\\\/10\\\/04\\\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\\\/#breadcrumb\"\n\t },\n\t \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t \"potentialAction\": [\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"ReadAction\",\n\t \"target\": [\n\t \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/pay-benefits\\\/2021\\\/10\\\/04\\\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\\\/\"\n\t ]\n\t }\n\t ]\n\t },\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/pay-benefits\\\/2021\\\/10\\\/04\\\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\\\/#primaryimage\",\n\t \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/Masked-student-at-Stuttgart.jpg.jpg\",\n\t \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/Masked-student-at-Stuttgart.jpg.jpg\"\n\t },\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"BreadcrumbList\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/pay-benefits\\\/2021\\\/10\\\/04\\\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\\\/#breadcrumb\",\n\t \"itemListElement\": [\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t \"position\": 1,\n\t \"name\": \"Home\",\n\t \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/\",\n\t \"ad_zone\": \"home\"\n\t },\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t \"position\": 2,\n\t \"name\": \"Pay & Benefits\",\n\t \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/pay-benefits\\\/\",\n\t \"ad_zone\": \"pay-benefits\"\n\t },\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t \"position\": 3,\n\t \"name\": \"DoD schools worldwide navigate the pandemic with mostly open classrooms, low infection rates\"\n\t }\n\t ]\n\t },\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"WebSite\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/#website\",\n\t \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/\",\n\t \"name\": \"Marine Corps Times\",\n\t \"description\": \"Marine Corps - Independent News For Marines | Marine Corps Times\",\n\t \"publisher\": {\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/#organization\"\n\t },\n\t \"potentialAction\": [\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"SearchAction\",\n\t \"target\": {\n\t \"@type\": \"EntryPoint\",\n\t \"urlTemplate\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"\n\t },\n\t \"query-input\": {\n\t \"@type\": \"PropertyValueSpecification\",\n\t \"valueRequired\": true,\n\t \"valueName\": \"search_term_string\"\n\t }\n\t }\n\t ],\n\t \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\"\n\t },\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"Organization\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/#organization\",\n\t \"name\": \"Marine Corps Times\",\n\t \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/\",\n\t \"logo\": {\n\t \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\n\t \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/marine-logo-white.png\",\n\t \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/marine-logo-white.png\",\n\t \"caption\": \"Marine Corps Times\"\n\t },\n\t \"image\": {\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"\n\t }\n\t },\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"Person\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\",\n\t \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t \"image\": {\n\t \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=gcf4cb6ee0ec29e49e7a963234e4340ec\",\n\t \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\n\t \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\n\t \"caption\": \"migration\"\n\t },\n\t \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/author\\\/migration\\\/\"\n\t }\n\t ]\n\t}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"DoD schools worldwide navigate the pandemic with mostly open classrooms, low infection rates - Marine Corps Times","description":"Less than 1 percent of DoDEA students got COVID during the 2020-2021 school year, despite largely remaining open for in-person instruction.","robots":{"index":"noindex","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"DoD schools worldwide navigate the pandemic with mostly open classrooms, low infection rates","og_description":"Less than 1 percent of DoDEA students got COVID during the 2020-2021 school year, despite largely remaining open for in-person instruction.","og_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/pay-benefits\/2021\/10\/04\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\/","og_site_name":"Marine Corps Times","article_published_time":"2021-10-04T21:20:07+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-08-08T14:03:04+00:00","author":"Karen Jowers","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Karen Jowers","Est. reading time":"12 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/pay-benefits\/2021\/10\/04\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/pay-benefits\/2021\/10\/04\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\/"},"author":{"name":"migration","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/#\/schema\/person\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1"},"headline":"DoD schools worldwide navigate the pandemic with mostly open classrooms, low infection rates","datePublished":"2021-10-04T21:20:07+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-08T14:03:04+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/pay-benefits\/2021\/10\/04\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\/"},"wordCount":2378,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/pay-benefits\/2021\/10\/04\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Masked-student-at-Stuttgart.jpg.jpg","articleSection":["Daily News Roundup","Home","Left Column","Newsletters","Pay & Benefits","Spouses"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/pay-benefits\/2021\/10\/04\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/pay-benefits\/2021\/10\/04\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/pay-benefits\/2021\/10\/04\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\/","name":"DoD schools worldwide navigate the pandemic with mostly open classrooms, low infection rates - Marine Corps Times","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/pay-benefits\/2021\/10\/04\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/pay-benefits\/2021\/10\/04\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Masked-student-at-Stuttgart.jpg.jpg","datePublished":"2021-10-04T21:20:07+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-08T14:03:04+00:00","description":"Less than 1 percent of DoDEA students got COVID during the 2020-2021 school year, despite largely remaining open for in-person instruction.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/pay-benefits\/2021\/10\/04\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/pay-benefits\/2021\/10\/04\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/pay-benefits\/2021\/10\/04\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Masked-student-at-Stuttgart.jpg.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Masked-student-at-Stuttgart.jpg.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/pay-benefits\/2021\/10\/04\/dod-schools-navigate-the-pandemic-with-mostly-open-classrooms-and-low-infection-rates\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/","ad_zone":"home"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Pay & Benefits","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/pay-benefits\/","ad_zone":"pay-benefits"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"DoD schools worldwide navigate the pandemic with mostly open classrooms, low infection rates"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/#website","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/","name":"Marine Corps Times","description":"Marine Corps - Independent News For Marines | Marine Corps Times","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/#organization","name":"Marine Corps Times","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/marine-logo-white.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/marine-logo-white.png","caption":"Marine Corps Times"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/#\/schema\/person\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1","name":"migration","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=gcf4cb6ee0ec29e49e7a963234e4340ec","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"migration"},"url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/author\/migration\/"}]}},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"Marine Corps Times","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes","push-errors":false,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Masked-student-at-Stuttgart.jpg.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63313","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=63313"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63313\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":63325,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63313\/revisions\/63325"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=63313"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=63313"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=63313"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=63313"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}