The Scott County School District announced plans Monday for a “soft opening” of schools in late July. Superintendent Dr. Tony McGee, in a video recording on the district website, said that following a “Safer at School” plan, students will return to the classroom beginning July 27, however not all students will attend on the same days.
Students with last names beginning with the letter A-L are being asked to return to school on Monday and Wednesday, July 27 and 29, and students with last names beginning with the letter M-Z will return to school on Tuesday and Thursday, July 28 and 30. On Friday students will stay at home and work on at-home learning packets. The same schedule will be followed the week of August 3. Students will return to school full time the week of August 10.
“On August 10 we will have had time by then to have practiced the guidelines that we need to help keep students, families and teachers safe in school. During the soft opening we would teach students the new guidelines of eating in the Cafeteria, moving about in the hallways, going to the restrooms, those types things that we have to get, for the daily operation of schools, down pat with the many social guidelines that we will need.”
McGee said they we will be taking temperatures of all students each morning and if there is a temperature of 100.4 or higher the student will be asked to return home.
“We’ve ordered masks to be available for our students and teachers,” McGee said and that individual schools have also ordered masks that have the schools’ logos on the face shield.
“We ask that we work together to make sure that we provide a safe place for boys and girls, and not only for boys and girls, but for teachers and principals and all the support staff that work in schools,” McGee said adding, “We do believe that the traditional model of school is the best model for our boys and girls in Scott County. The virtual learning plan makes it very difficult for boys and girls to get the adequate education they need. We truly believe the best avenue for every child to learn is to have a teacher in the classroom working with them one-on-one each and every day.
“We will do everything we can and everything possible to keep boys and girls safe at school...but there is no way I can guarantee safety...everyday we send boys and girls to school there is always a risk. Whether it’s falling off the swing set or something else happening in school during that day. We take every safety precaution we can, given the opportunities that we have, to provide safety to our boys and girls and will continue to do that,” he concluded.
As of press time Tuesday, Forest Municipal Schools had not yet released their plan of action for returning to school.
