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INITIATIVE

COVID-19 Pandemic:Uniting the Business Community for Response and Recovery

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Challenge Seattle united the business community as committed partners in the response and recovery, bringing a range of private sector resources to bear to address the far-reaching challenges of the pandemic.

The Challenge

Beginning in 2020, the global COVID-19 pandemic shook every part of our community and livelihoods. Our region had the first confirmed COVID-19 case in the United States in January 2020, and in the following months the fear would escalate dramatically as we began to see the insidious nature and threat the virus poses. We locked down, shuttering our businesses and remaining at home in the hopes that we might prevent the worst effects of the pandemic, and found ourselves in a period of incredible uncertainty. The ensuing years would bring new waves of the virus.

0

lives were lost in Washington State from the COVID-19 pandemic

Source: WA DOH July 2023

Our Focus

At Challenge Seattle, we believe the biggest problems of our time require all of us to come together, leading and innovating through partnerships to meet the urgency and significant challenges of the moment. The COVID-19 pandemic necessitated such a collaborative approach, and as the pandemic evolved and brought new challenges, we sought to unite the business community to coordinate action, save lives, and promote recovery.

Our Work

From a public-private partnership for vaccine roll-out to research on K-12 learning loss, Challenge Seattle supported and led a wide range of initiatives, leveraging our members’ world-class resources to tackle a broad range of challenges presented by the pandemic. Below are several of our efforts; a full recounting of our work during COVID-19 can be found in our 2020 and 2021 annual reports.

Weekly calls

Through 2020 and 2021, we hosted weekly calls for CEOs and business leaders across the region, providing a platform for vital information sharing. Hearing directly from leading health experts and policy makers, the calls enabled cross-sector collaboration to ensure government and business responses were aligned to protect public health and promote economic recovery.

Vaccine Command Center

Challenge Seattle partnered with Washington State Governor Inslee and the Washington State Department of Health (DOH) to create the Vaccine Action Command and Coordination Center (VACCS)—a public-private partnership to deliver vaccines quickly, safely, efficiently, and equitably to state residents. With our region’s world-class companies’ expertise in logistics, technology, and communications, the VACCS quickly became a nationally recognized model and Challenge Seattle created a playbook to help other states and jurisdictions create their own public-private vaccine partnerships. See our reports, Vaccine Playbook for Public-Private Partnerships and VACCS Center Final Report: Blueprint for Public-Private Partnering.

By July 1, 2021, in King County…

0

had been administered

90%

of the 60+ population had been vaccinated

Resources for employers

We worked closely with Public Health experts from King County and Washington State to create a guide for businesses to support critical contact tracing efforts; and, in partnership with Washington Roundtable and the Boston Consulting Group, we developed a checklist to help employers prepare for a safe re-opening. See our reports: Healthy Workplace: The Role of Employers in Effective Contact Tracing and Washington State COVID-19 Response “New Normal’ planning”

Supporting students and administrators

Understanding K-12 Learning Loss

In partnership with Washington Roundtable, we commissioned Boston Consulting Group to compile a report examining short- and long-term learning loss due to COVID-19 disruptions in Washington State. The research effort included a landscape analysis of national research regarding learning loss; an examination of 30+ case studies; and over 100 interviews with community-based organizations, school leaders, educators, caretakers, students, and more. The study also presents a menu of options that school district leaders and state policymakers can deploy to address learning loss in Washington state. See our report, Washington K-12 Learning Loss.

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Best Practices for Reopening Schools

We partnered with Washington Roundtable and Kinetic West, to research best practices for re-opening K-12 schools. Based on thorough research and interviews with education leaders, the resulting report reviews how other states and countries are approaching a safe return to school for K-12 students. This work was completed on behalf of the Office of the Superintendent for Public Instruction (OSPI) and helped to inform re-opening guidance issued by OSPI to K-12 school districts in Washington State. See the OSPI report, Reopening Washington Schools 2020: OSPI District Planning Guide.

Alongside the Washington Roundtable, we also worked with Boston Consulting Group to identify and compile best practices for re-opening higher education. Developed in partnership with Washington’s higher education leaders, the resulting resources include a checklist of baseline recommendations for re-opening, as well as additional considerations for campus safety and protocols for food services, campus transportation, and residences. This work also includes a united statement issued by our state’s higher education leadership to instill confidence in students, parents, faculty, staff, and the community regarding their shared commitment to safely re-open.

ALL COVID-19 REPORTS

VACCS Center Final Report

VACCS Center Final Report

The extraordinary success of vaccinations throughout Washington working across sectors embodies the collective and innovative spirit of the state…

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Vaccine Playbook for Public-Private Partnerships

Vaccine Playbook for Public-Private Partnerships

Challenge Seattle has compiled the Vaccine Playbook for Public-Private Partnerships in coordination with the VACCS Center, our private partners, and the Department of Health…

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Washington K-12 Learning Loss

Washington K-12 Learning Loss

How should we mitigate and reverse COVID-induced learning loss in Washington State?

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Healthy Workplace: The Role of Employers in Effective Contact Tracing

Healthy Workplace: The Role of Employers in Effective Contact Tracing

Contact tracing is a critical tool in a community’s effort to stop the spread of COVID-19 as stay at home measures are lifted…

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Reopening Washington Schools 2020: OSPI District Planning Guide

Reopening Washington Schools 2020: OSPI District Planning Guide

There has never been a bigger moment to examine our education system and improve our practices to further close opportunity gaps…

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Washington State COVID-19 Economic Impact

Washington State COVID-19 Economic Impact

This report by the Boston Consulting Group provides an overview and framework for considering the impact of the pandemic on Washington’s economy…

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Washington State COVID-19 Response “New Normal” planning

Washington State COVID-19 Response “New Normal” planning

Prepared in April 2020, this report examined in real-time the transition from the immediate economic impacts of the pandemic to the “new normal”…

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