Back to School this year could look quite different for the Ellwood City Area School District.
Due to Covid-19, going back isn’t just as simple as going back. With state mandates and guidelines changing weekly, if not daily, administrators and educators in the district are working to develop multiple plans for multiple scenarios.
The district’s pandemic task force and its subcommittees have been meeting regularly to make sure that students can return safely.
“In late June, we were hoping for a full reopening,” said ECASD’s Superintendent Joseph Mancini at a recent board of directors meeting.
Mancini said that hope changed as an order came down from the state’s department of education requiring a face covering when at least 6 feet of “social distancing” isn’t possible.
According to Mancini, keeping that type of distance between students will be too difficult with a full house.
The district surveyed parents regarding their thoughts on back to school. Mancini said a resounding majority opinion was that although parents want kids back in school, they don’t want them wearing masks all day.
That proposes a challenge to the district regarding how to proceed. Because of this, the task force developed a hybrid option that will allow the students to return to school in groups. The hybrid option would also include online instruction completed at home. There would be two groups. Group A would attend school at the building on Mondays and Tuesdays. Online instruction for Group A would be completed at home on Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. Group B would attend school at the building on Thursdays and Fridays. Online instruction for Group B would be held on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays. Staff would be in the building working on Wednesdays when a deep cleaning of the facilities would occur. The proposed plan would organize the A and B groups by bus route, which would keep families on the same schedule.
Students will be required to wear a mask in common areas.
Another option should Covid-19 cases spike would be a full cyber version online.
Dom Salvucci, a parent in attendance, asked the board and administrators to carefully consider the options and the platform used for the cyber option. He warned that if it isn’t good enough, students will leave the district.
“People are going to bail for cyber charter schools,” he said.
Mancini said the district is taking all concerns into consideration and asked the crowd for understanding.
“Everyone has to be flexible and patient,” Mancini said. “The target changes weekly, if not daily, and we have to be ready to go with any option.”
Mancini also said that the district will rely heavily on the judgement of parents regarding illness. He said they will not be checking the temperatures of the students, and should a student or staff member fall ill, the state will handle any quarantine issues.
“We aren’t in the quarantine business,” he said. “We are in the education business.”
Mancini said there will be follow up surveys sent out, as the plan remains fluid at this time.
Parents in attendance at the meeting had plenty of questions regarding the plans and special situations specific to their own children. Many of the questions were not able to be answered specifically at this time as the district is unsure whether back to school will be hybrid or fully online.
Why would you not check temps.? If someone has a temp. they could be sent home as not to infect any other student.