MOUNT VERNON — Last Thursday, Gov. Mike DeWine released state guidance for the reopening for K-12 schools this upcoming fall. Much of how the school year will look will be in the hands of local school boards of education in partnership with their local health departments.
State guidelines for K-12 schools, released under COVID-19 Health and Prevention Guidance for Ohio K-12 Schools, have many recommendations but only one mandate: All faculty, staff and volunteers must wear masks unless it is unsafe to do so. The schools must also create a face mask policy for everyone else entering into school buildings during the day. The rest of the guidance includes best practices for assessing symptoms, increasing sanitation, social distancing and risk assessment and mitigation.
Bill Seder, Mount Vernon City School District superintendent, said they have been looking at a lot of guidance and recommendations. The governor’s guidance, he said, leaves a lot of flexibility.
“The governor has listened to us and seems to be willing to provide guidance but also offer flexibility,” Seder said.
This flexibility is needed because there isn’t a “one-size-fits-all” plan for all schools, Seder added, and it’s good to have general guidelines offered to them. The district will work with Knox Public Health to formulate an operational plan. A county-wide meeting with superintendents and KPH Health Commissioner Julie Miller was held Tuesday, and Seder said the district will hopefully get a best-case possible plan out by Thursday.
“Everything is fluid at the moment, so everything can change in an instant,” Seder said, adding that patience, flexibility and fluidity is needed at the moment. “We hope the community understands we’re making the best of a difficult situation.”
Fredericktown Local Schools has a pandemic committee working on, and looking at, all the different options, but the ultimate goal was, and still is, to get back to as normal as possible, Superintendent Susan Hayward said. With the guidance released from the state, she hopes that they can provide some information about reopening at their next board of education meeting on July 14.
“I wasn’t surprised by it,” she said about the released guidelines. “It’s wonderful the governor gave local guidance to the school board.”
She said the district is in a good place with ordering personal protection equipment and preparing for sanitation methods. The next steps will be formalizing plans for masks and social distancing. Hayward said a lot of hard work needs to be done within the next month to get the school ready for the fall.
Highland Local Schools has been working on general plans to have students in school full-time, with some options available to them. Superintendent Nate Huffman shared that, based on student interest, there would be an online option for students and the possibility of a hybrid option for high school students.
“We hope to have plans fully released in about two weeks,” Huffman said, adding this will allow them time to determine staffing options and class sizes depending on how parents, and students, choose to return. “But the situation could also change real quick.”
The district is going to work with the Morrow County Health District and with other superintendents in Morrow County to make sure everyone is on the same page as to how school will look. Huffman said that having local control is a good thing because what’s good for one area isn’t always good for another school district. What is important, he emphasized, was working with the local health department and getting at least all the schools in the counties on the same page.
Besides the mask policy and social distancing guidelines, one of the biggest issues that the district is still working on, according to Huffman, is busing, which is a huge piece for rural districts. If they have to limit the number of students on a bus, he said, they would never get all the kids to school.
Danville Local School is currently looking at several different options when it comes to getting the students back in the buildings. Superintendent Jason Snively offered the district is looking at four different options for the fall semester. Each option will include increased sanitation and disinfecting while keeping in mind the educational needs of students.
If a normal schedule isn’t possible under the guidelines and guidance from KPH, Snively said they are looking at a one-room schoolhouse feel where students stay in one small cohort in one homeroom while the teachers rotate to the students. In-class instruction would be offset by having all work available online as well. The main reason for this plan, according to Snively, is the fact that social distancing will be hard to manage but they can manage better by keeping student cohorts in the small room.
“What can work for us isn’t going to be the same for everyone else,” Snively said, adding the biggest thing will be working with the health department and figuring out what the schools can and can not do.
“We’re just as frustrated and anxious as everyone else,” Snively said about the process of reopening. He added that hopefully, they will have something by their July 20 board meeting.
Steve Larcomb, superintendent at East Knox Local Schools, said after their meeting Tuesday with Miller, they will sit down with the administrative teams to see how the fall semester will work under the current guidelines.
“I hope by Thursday we can release a plan of action, barring any changes,” Larcomb said. “To give an idea of how things change, I had one plan in mind last week and have a different plan this week after reflecting on the guidelines.”
He continued saying that they want to do what’s best for the greatest number of kids. Over the next couple of days, they will sit down and see if the plan they have is viable with KPH and if it’s feasible with the staff they have. Larcomb does believe that the plan they are working on will be able to get done.
“I understand it’s a difficult time of year,” he said towards parents who are trying to figure out school supplies and to parents and students alike who are looking forward to school. And while they have a shortened planning window, he believes they can still plan and live within that and get what is needed to be done in time.
Superintendent of North Fork Local Schools Scott Hartley said they are working with the Licking County Health Department on the guidance that was released and will be organizing a plan with the hope of potentially starting school at the normal time.
“I will review the information with the staff and hopefully have (a plan) out to the public before August 1,” Hartley said.
When it comes to the guidelines, he said they were what he figured would come out and that he would have liked to see more specifics on issues that raise big questions like food service and transportation. However, he noted the district will be working with their local health department on those topics.
It’s the district’s hope and intent to get kids back in school, Hartley said, but anything can still happen between now and when school starts.
