Hempfield officials take steps toward welcoming middle school students back daily

Officials at the Hempfield Area School District are gearing up for the possibility of middle school students returning to a more regular schedule.

Surveys sent out last week by Matthew Conner, assistant superintendent for secondary education, ask parents if they will send their children back to school daily or commit to online learning for the period between Dec. 1 and Jan. 18. The instructional model will be re-examined at the end of the first semester, but responses are being gathered to help officials ensure necessary precautions are taken for when students would make a full return to the classroom.

Students are attending school through a hybrid model in which they attend in-person and virtual classes every other day.

“We look forward to welcoming all middle school students to attend school daily as we realize it is a hardship for students to be at home on an every other day schedule,” Conner wrote in a letter to parents. “Also, we want to provide this intervention to students who may be struggling academically with remote learning.”

When students do return to school daily, they will be put on an A/B schedule. That means the 80 minute instructional blocks will be split for students to rotate between face-to-face time with their teachers and spending time in an overflow space where they will attend classes virtually.

For example, on A days, students who are on the B schedule will begin their day in the overflow space where they will watch the teacher online. Halfway through the class, the students will switch. This method will be used for core classes, including English language arts, math, science and social studies.

Students will attend special classes based on available space that will allow for social distancing.

“The purpose of this survey is to determine how many parents will send their students to school every day in order to ensure we have prepared overflow spaces properly at each middle school,” Conner said. “It is imperative that all middle school families respond to the survey for planning purposes.”

Parents must complete the survey by 4 p.m. Friday.

The survey came less than a week after school board members held a meeting to discuss how to move forward as covid-19 cases continue to surge in the county. Board members ultimately decided to stick with the hybrid model, with several expressing their desire to fully reopen as soon as it is safe.