OKC schools don't expect delay for 1st-12th grade return

Although classes have been canceled for nearly two weeks, Oklahoma City students are still expected to return to more than 50 schools next week for the first time since March.

Oklahoma City Public Schools announced Tuesday no faceto-face or online class sessions would take place the rest of the week. Students will have online assignments to complete on their own time at home.

However, the bulk of the student body is still on track to return to school next week for the first time in almost seven months, a district spokeswoman said Wednesday.

Face-to-face classes would begin for first through 12th grade on Tuesday. These grade levels have been in virtual learning since school started Aug. 31. The district plans for them to return for twice-a-week classes split into a Tuesday-Thursday or Wednesday-Friday schedule.

Pre-K and kindergarten students returned to in-person classes Oct. 20, also with a split schedule.

Administrators will make the final call Friday on whether inperson instruction will proceed next week. The Oklahoma State Department of Health releases weekly COVID-19 data every Friday with per-capita rates for every county.

Oklahoma County has remained just above Orange Level 2 — 25 cases per 100,000 people — for the past three weeks.

The Oklahoma State Department of Education recommends districts “give serious thought” to distance learning or carefully managed alternative schedules once their home county reaches Orange Level 2.

District leadership reviews multiple data points, but administrators have said a spike to Red Level — 50 cases per 100,000 — would be the clearest indicator that all in-person classes would halt.

Face-to-face classes for pre-K and kindergarten resumed two weeks ago, but widespread power outages drastically curtailed instructional time. Schools have been closed for more than a week after an ice storm impacted electrical lines throughout the Oklahoma City metro area.

At least 10 schools were without power on Tuesday, a district spokeswoman said.

Tens of thousands of people are still without electricity from the storm, which knocked out power to more than 200,000 metro homes last week. Although hundreds of thousands have had their power restored, Oklahoma Gas & Electric Co. reports more than 67,500 outages in Oklahoma City and over 700 in Spencer as of mid-day Wednesday.

Teachers are to “make every effort” to contact students this week, the Oklahoma City district said while announcing class cancellations. Students who are unable to connect to online assignments should get in touch with their teachers as soon as possible, and their attendance record will not be affected, the district said.

This week marks the end of the first nine weeks of the school year. The deadline to submit and grade assignments has been extended to next week.

Curbside meal service is still available at 48 schools, though outages have limited distribution at other locations. An updated list of operational meal sites, serving from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., is available at okcps.com/meals.