Beaufort County prepares to announce hybrid virtual, in-person school reopening plan
Beaufort County School District, on deadline to submit its fall reopening plan to the state by Friday, will discuss three options Wednesday night: in-person instruction, virtual school and a hybrid model.
A five-page document uploaded to the school board’s meeting website outlines the options to be discussed at the board meeting: a fully virtual learning model, a face-to-face model with a traditional schedule, and an alternating day face-to-face model that has students attending classes in person two days per week.
The first two options comply with a Wednesday announcement by S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster that every district must include an option for students to learn virtually or return to the classroom full time.
The school board will begin its meeting at 6 p.m. Wednesday, with public comment scheduled for 9 p.m. People interested in speaking can email the board’s assistant at robyn.cushingberry@beaufort.k12.sc.us between 7 and 8 p.m. Wednesday with their name, phone number and topic.
SC for Ed, a grassroots teacher organization, and the Palmetto State Teachers Association have both called McMaster’s announcement “dangerous,” according to The State newspaper.
“While we know more now than we did in March about how COVID-19 is spread and contained, the current rate of spread of COVID-19 in our state makes a return to full in-person instruction far more dangerous than it was when the Governor ordered schools to close in March,” the Palmetto State Teachers Association said in a statement.
Neighboring Savannah-Chatham and Jasper County school districts have both announced they will begin the school year with virtual-only instruction, the latter in defiance of McMaster.
Jasper County superintendent Rechel Anderson said Wednesday that she would “stand behind” her decision to begin school entirely online, with a plan to phase in hybrid instruction “when it was safe to do so.”
“I’m not in the business of playing Russian Roulette with anyone’s life, and that’s really what it feels (like),” Anderson said.
The South Carolina High School League voted Wednesday to delay the start of high school sports to September, and the start of high school practices to Aug. 17.
The district’s registration for virtual or in-person options opened Monday, with superintendent Frank Rodriguez asking parents to register their children as soon as possible to “help school principals meet physical distancing requirements and safety protocols for face-to-face instruction.”
At a June 24 board meeting, chief instructional services officer Mary Stratos said the district is hoping to pair with K-12 Learning, a popular virtual curriculum provider for South Carolina’s charter schools, for the fall.
The district plans to begin a S.C. Virtual Franchise for high school credit-bearing courses.
The district also announced plans for in-person summer school instruction at that meeting, and though the start of summer school has since been delayed to a start date of July 20 or later, the cautionary measures the district had planned could resurface in the fall:
Classrooms would have a 10:1 ratio, and students and teachers would be required to wear masks (and face shields, in the case of teachers). Students would have to provide documentation for any medical conditions or doctor’s counsel to not wear a mask.
Classrooms would be arranged to maintain social distance, and will have sanitizing wipes and daily cleanings.
Buses would be limited to 50% capacity and one student or two siblings per seat. Buses would be sanitized between routes, and students would be supervised for social distancing at car pick-up lines and bus parking lots.
The summer programs would run from 7:39 a.m. to 11:39 a.m. Students would receive breakfast in classrooms and a bagged lunch to take home at the end of the day.
Parents were being asked to conduct wellness checks before sending students to school. Students would not be temperature-checked at the door. Students and staff would be asked to stay home if they are ill.