American high schools would have to be completely reimagined to open this fall. The 7-period day, with a frenzied crush in the hallways to get to lockers and classes, a packed cafeteria with lines and cliques, means one case could transmit to dozens in the course of a day.

Teachers share rooms and many schools are over-crowded with the space they have. There is no spacial organization in scheduling, students can have classes on the first floor then the third, then a separate wing... imagine trying to create student cohorts in the covid era.

This insistence that schools should “open” again overlooks the how. The binary of open/close should be rejected. If schools are really going to open in the fall, work on physical buildings and schedules needs to start now.

Schools will need a massive influx of cash to open safely. When a politician insists school’s need to open, the next question should be, “How much funding are you offering?”