Some students in the Greenwood Leflore Consolidated School District will soon return to classrooms.
Those families who have indicated a preference to send their children back to school for a hybrid schedule — a combination of face-to-face instruction and distance learning — will be able to do so starting March 15, the first day after spring break, Dr. Mary Brown, superintendent, said Tuesday.
For a year, students have been instructed via distance learning as a precaution to protect against the coronavirus.
Brown told the school board at its meeting Tuesday that about 600 students will take part in the hybrid model. Social distancing will be practiced, and the district will provide face masks to all students and staff returning to the campuses.
Parents had until the end of November to fill out a survey saying whether they would be willing to send their students back to the buildings. The district had planned to open in January but had to push the date back two months after COVID-19 numbers rose.
Brown also said that because some students already have been brought in to take standardized tests, she feels the district is prepared for this next step.
“We have gone through the process,” she said. “We bused in our juniors to take the ACT, and that was successful, and so we just went ahead with moving forward to allowing a small population of students to move in.”
Eventually, Brown said, all students will have to be seated in the classroom for at least a short period to take state tests.
Local private schools have held class with traditional instruction and added safety procedures since the start of the school year. Leflore Legacy Academy, the area’s only charter school, started a hybrid schedule in January.
Also during the meeting:
• The board approved paid leave for employees because of the back-to-back winter storms last month that forced schools to close for a week.
• The board approved applying for a $50,000 grant as part of the Mississippi Community Oriented Policing Services in Schools Program.
Charles Johnson, assistant superintendent, said this grant is meant to enhance community policing, provide school resource officers to develop or enhance a school safety plan and provide a link between the district and local emergency responders.
Johnson said if the grant is awarded, the funds will be split up and help pay the salaries of the school’s safety officers.
• The board also took a moment to give the local athletic teams and coaches that made it into the playoffs a round of applause. The Amanda Elzy High School girls’ basketball team made it to the second round of the playoffs before being eliminated Friday night.
• Johnson announced that the district will be conducting active shooter exercises at Greenwood High School on Thursday, beginning at 8:30 a.m.
Johnson said law enforcement and emergency vehicles will be present for the training.
Some school personnel will be on site, but no students will be at school. Dr. Kenneth Pulley, deputy superintendent, said this will not affect student learning or test-taking.
• The board went into a closed-door executive session to discuss personnel matters.
• Contact Adam Bakst at 581-7233 or abakst@gwcommonwealth.com. On Twitter at @AdamBakst_GWCW.
