Shaler Area School District again extends remote learning; return to classrooms moved to mid-January

Shaler Area School District has again extended its remote learning period, this time through Jan. 15.

Superintendent Sean Aiken alerted families through a letter that students will return to the classroom for hybrid instruction beginning Jan. 19 for Cohort A and Jan. 21 for Cohort B.

January 18 is a regularly scheduled in-service day.

The letter is posted to the district’s website.

This is the second extension given to the virtual learning model this month. Students originally were expected to return from winter break and head back to district buildings on Jan. 4, and then on Jan. 11.

“Out of an abundance of caution, we have made the difficult decision to extend (it) for one additional week,” Aiken wrote.

“We recognize the incredible hardship this creates for many of our families and we sincerely apologize that we were not able to send this announcement sooner.”

Aiken had told families in December that the at-home learning provides quarantine for any covid-19 exposures that happened over the holidays and suggested that plans could change, saying they were based on recommendations from state and county health officials.

On Friday, Allegheny County reported 967 new coronavirus cases, more than any other county in the state.

The new cases were the highest reported in the county in about a week but still well short of the record 1,322 reported Dec. 11.

The seven-day average is up to 711 cases, the highest it has been in the past two weeks.

Aiken said school leaders look forward to welcoming students and staff back to the buildings when the time is right.

“Please know that this decision is disappointing for all of us,” he said.