Highlands considers allowing students up to 4 days of in-person instruction

Highlands School District is considering allowing students to return to school four days a week, with reduced social distancing.

The district is now using a hybrid schedule that has students separated into two groups, each of which learns in school two days a week and remotely three days a week.

The district’s covid task force is recommending that students return to in-person learning Monday through Thursday. Friday would remain a remote day for all students so custodians could deep-clean buildings.

To help it reach a decision, the district is conducting a survey of parents on its website.

The deadline to respond is 5 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 24.

“We really want to hear from everyone and where everyone wants (their children) to be,” said school board President Bobbie Neese.

If a four-day plan is approved, district spokeswoman Jennifer Goldberg said it likely would begin in mid-March, near the end of the district’s third quarter.

Students would still have the option of fully remote instruction, Goldberg said.

6 foot-rule would not be followed

Students and staff would still need to wear masks and adhere to social distancing guidelines.

But the district said it likely would not be possible for students to stay 6 feet apart for most of the day because of the increased number of students in classrooms, on buses, and in cafeterias and common areas.

“We would want to distance the desks as far as we possibly can in any given area,” Goldberg said.

According to Goldberg, Highlands had 30 positive covid cases during the first semester of school, with most among staff members. From Jan. 22 through Feb. 16, there have been 22 cases among students and staff, she said.

Superintendent’s take

During a school board meeting Monday, Superintendent Monique Mawhinney warned that going to four days of in-person instruction for all students could result in more covid cases and force the district to close buildings more often because of strict guidelines the district must follow.

Mawhinney said she did not want to minimize the risk of the virus, but added, “It’s time to get our kids back in school.”

She said children being in school only two days a week has detrimental social and emotional effects.

Mawhinney pointed to research claiming that schools are the safest places for children to be, with little evidence that the virus is spreading within schools, which she said are more structured and controlled environments than other places.

Mawhinney said it’s important for parents to take the survey so the district knows their preference. The district can’t assume what parents want or don’t want, she said.

“This is everybody’s opportunity to give their input and state their opinion,” she said.