-
The Hartwell Sun
Hart County schools are set to return to the classroom on Aug. 17 with safety precautions in place, and parents will have the option to choose between in-person instruction or online learning.
The Hart County Board of Education approved 5-0 at its regular meeting Monday night a plan for returning to school amidst the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Under the approved plans, the start date for the school year is pushed back from Aug. 5 to Aug. 17.
Parents will be given the option to choose whether to allow their students to return to in-person instruction at school or online via virtual learning.
A decision for which option the parent chooses must be made by July 30. Under the plans, that decision is final and may not be changed until the next semester begins in January.
Superintendent Jay Floyd said the school system has increased sanitation measures, including providing classrooms with “care packages” that could include hand sanitizer and sanitizing wipes among other items.
Face coverings or masks are not required, but are recommended for students and staff, especially in circumstances where it is difficult to practice social distancing.
A decision matrix crafted by the state Department of Education and the Department of Public Health offers guidance for how to handle potential COVID-19 cases at the schools. Logs are to be kept of students who are sick and reported to the DPH for contact tracing, Floyd said.
New teacher orientation is now scheduled for Aug. 3 and Aug. 4. Pre-planning is set for eight days from Aug. 5 to Aug. 14.
Four days will be added to the end of school year and the last day of school for students will be June 4, 2021.
Read the full story in the July 16 edition of The Hartwell Sun.