Last night at the regularly scheduled December School Board meeting, the decision was made to have grades 7-12 start the 2nd semester in Remote Learning status for the first seven instructional days (Jan. 6-14). This decision was made in anticipation of staffing challenges following the break, similar to what we have experienced after previous holidays. The district took a similar approach following the Thanksgiving break, which proved to be beneficial in allowing us to navigate staffing challenges that arise due to required quarantines from exposures that occur over the holidays.
While it’s only seven days, since the 2nd semester begins on a Wednesday (Jan. 6th) and the following week contains teacher professional development day (Jan. 15th), coupled with the MLK Jr holiday the following Monday (Jan. 18th), students will not return to in-person learning until Tuesday, Jan. 19th. This is almost three weeks after the New year’s holiday, which we believe will be sufficient for us to weather any potential spike in COVID-19 cases in our community.
While starting a semester in remote Learning is not ideal, we believe it is the prudent decision at this time. Teachers in grades 7-12 will work with students to prepare them for those seven days and the respective principal will provide parents with more detailed information for their building.
Students in grades PreK-6 will return to in-person learning as planned on Wednesday, Jan. 6th.
Thank you for your continued understanding and flexibility!