Garces announces plans to fully reopen to in-person learning
Garces Memorial High School announced its plans to reopen its doors to students for in-person learning on Oct. 28.
Principal Myka Peck said she’s excited at the prospect of welcoming students back on campus. Though all 500 students will be given the option to remain in distance learning, she expects to see most of the student body.
“Honestly, the majority want to be back,” Peck said.
Classes will be brought in one day at a time: seniors first, then freshmen, sophomores and juniors.
Most students in the county have remained in distance learning, but those who have returned to their campuses are elementary students or special education students who stay in small, constant groups and don’t change classes.
But Garces students will be returning to a traditional high school schedule where they attend school every day, change classes and don’t necessarily stay with the same small group of students all day.
Peck says that there will be extensive safety measures taken between
classes: hallways will be one direction only, students’ temperatures will be taken before every period and surfaces in classrooms will be wiped down between every period. Some classes will be moved outside occasionally or into untraditional spaces, like chapels or gyms. Night crews will perform deep cleanings at the end of every school day.
Though students will not be in small groups, during breaks, they will be in “pods” separated by grade, and students have to let the school know about ride-sharing.
Other standards set by the state’s public health department apply to Garces’ reopening as well: students are expected to
wear masks; if a positive case pops up at the school, exposed students and staff should be quarantined for 14 days; and the school will shut down if more than 5 percent of the campus tests positive for COVID in a 14day period.
Peck commended her staff for doing a great job under the limits of distance learning, but said parents and students are looking forward to being back together as a community.
“We’ve done a great job, but what they’ve missed is the family atmosphere,” Peck said.
You can read more about the school’s reopening on its website: https:// garces.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Garces-Reentry-Plan_-WEBSITE.pdf