Schools plan for reopening this fall

Amid the novel coronavirus pandemic, Wickliffe Schools Superintendent Joe Spiccia says the district is doing all it can to prepare residents and families for the upcoming school year.

Staff will be returning to their classrooms on Aug. 17, while students will start on Aug. 25.

“Teachers have been involved as members of the reopening team,” Spiccia said. “The members of the team are assisting in establishing appropriate guidelines, procedures, and protocols for reopening. “They are receiving additional professional development time at the beginning of the school year to prepare for instruction (in-person and remote).”

Custodians and cleaning staff have also received additional training in cleaning and disinfecting. The district is also providing additional personal protective equipment to be sure all protocols have been put in place to meet the needs of staff.

Like most school districts, Wickliffe will be offering traditional in-school learning and online education when it comes to learning options. The district has made several plans for the reopening of school.

For traditional in-person instruction, all students will attend daily as normal. The district has made accommodations to appropriately physically distance students, and all students and staff will be required to wear face coverings.

Plans have been created to manage lunch, hallway traffic, restrooms, cleaning and disinfecting, and other operational elements.

School hours for Wickliffe Elementary students will be 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. while Middle School and High School students will be 7:15 a.m. and noon.

Afternoons will include required remote learning in all grade levels. The district is reviewing the abbreviated day model and will seek to offer to offer fullday programming if it can be done so safely.

Grab-and-go lunches will be available upon students leaving the building. If possible the schools will provide the following day’s breakfast meal. If the district can move to full-day programming, lunch will be incorporated into the daily schedule.

Wickliffe has upped the ante by taking various measures to avoid the spread of COVID-19 for those choosing the traditional route:

• Daily health assessments are required of all students and staff.

• Classrooms and learning spaces are being configured for physical distancing

• All students and staff will wear face coverings

• All students will be issued a personal barrier.

The district has developed plans to manage lunch, hallway traffic, restrooms, cleaning and disinfecting, and other operational elements of the school day.

Also, people in the building during the school day will be limited to staff and students.

For those choosing to stay home, students will have the option of a 100% online program which aligns with the Wickliffe Schools curriculum. All students in the program will be assigned a teacher to assist them to successfully navigate the curriculum, manage technical support, and keep them on-track and progressing successfully.

But even with all the protections set in place, there are still chances for the infection to spread. Spiccia said that in the event that in-person instruction is considered high risk, the entire district will move to remote instruction for all students.

Teachers will teach their classes remotely. Students will attend school via an electronic platform on a regular schedule. All students will be issued an electronic device (laptop or tablet) with the software needed to participate in a remote learning environment fully. Wi-Fi access will be available to all students in need.

Spiccia said he isn’t worried per se, but he is very cautious to protect his students and their families.

“It is difficult to speculate,” he said. “Containing the spread of the virus is the responsibility of all of us. If everyone follows the recommendations of public health officials (personal hygiene, face coverings, and appropriate physical distancing), we can contain the spread and have a successful school year.

“I advocate for taking the steps necessary to meet the needs of students, staff, and the entire community,” he said.