Students to learn from home through mid-January
“This plan also eliminates the continued disruptive adjustments for both families and employees that result from the week-to-week waiting and unpredictable nature of multiple changes.” Brookfield Superintendent of Schools Superintendent John Barile
BROOKFIELD — Local schools are expected to continue distance learning through mid-January, the district’s superintendent announced Wednesday.
Superintendent John Barile wrote in a message to families, faculty and staff that remote instruction would continue through Jan. 15. The district would expect to resume some form of learning in person Jan. 19, the email read.
“Determination of the model (Hybrid or 100%) will be communicated upon our return from the winter recess and will be made based upon the health metrics at that time,” according to the email.
Brookfield schools pivoted to all-online learning in November and planned to carry on with that through Dec. 4. The continuation of that model comes “out of an abundance of caution and upon the strong recommendation of our health and medical advisors,” according to the email.
“The leading COVID health indicator continues to trend upward from 28.1 cases per 100,000 last week to a rate of 36.1 cases per
100,000 and the secondary indicator of positivity rate has risen from 5.9% to 7%. Both of these indicators are generated from the 14 day period from November 8th - 21st,” the email read. “According to the Brookfield Health Department, these indicators are on the rise.”
The possibility of COVID-19 exposures from “during the Thanksgiving weekend” and concerns about maintaining sufficient staff were also acknowledged in the email. And after some changes to the expected plans for the schools’ learning models thus far, Barile wrote that this update “provides adequate notice” so that people can plan accordingly.
“This plan also eliminates the continued disruptive adjustments for both families and employees that result from the week-toweek waiting and unpredictable nature of multiple changes,” he wrote.