SCHOOLS PREPARING FOR STUDENTS’ RETURN
Elementary students begin hybrid classes on Oct. 26, and grades 5 to 12 on Nov. 9
Schools are expected to welcome back elementary school students on Oct. 26 while grades 5-12 students will have a Nov. 9 return to classrooms.
The schedule was discussed during a Board of Education meeting Wednesday, with Superintendent Paul Padalino saying the there will be two days in district buildings and three days of online instructions. He noted that decisions are still being made about which days each student will be in buildings.
“Our building principals are working on their class loads and our transportation department is working on their busloads,” he said. “Our principals will inform parents which group their students are in ... by Monday, Oct. 19.”
Exceptions to the alternate schedule will be pre-kindergarten classes at Meagher Elementary School, where sessions will be in the building five days per week and students in self-contained classes that will be in schools Monday through Thursday.
School days are expected to be 9:55 a.m. to 3 p.m. for prekindergarten through fourth
grade; 7:40 a.m. to 2:20 p.m. for grades 5 through 8: and 7:20 a.m. to 2 p.m. for grades 9 through 12.
“We built in time for our buses to drop off (early enough) for our safety checks and our temperature checks as students come into the building,” Padalino said.
Officials have also set Oct. 26 to begin pre-season interscholastic sports programs.
“Those are small group workouts, not large-scale practices or with any individual team,” Padalino said. “Section 9 has decided to open sports on Nov. 30.”
There is a planned Jan. 4 start for extracurricular activities.
Padalino said planning is still being done for lunch schedules and arrangements to comfort with social distancing requirements.
“We are working with our foodservice people (to) measure out our cafeterias,” he said. “We’ve measured out other spaces to move students to. We are going to move away from large tables to small tables and/ or desks.”
Padalino said there are still some issues that need to be cleared up for parents, included will be explanations for what is meant by “synchronous” and “asynchronous” instruction. He did not clarify how the district is applying those terms but acknowledged that it is in reference to having live contact with teachers.
Officials had expected to open buildings to elementary students only but found that plan was not sustainable under expected state aid cuts of $14 million.