Less than two weeks after Sacramento County moved into a less restrictive reopening tier, some 20,000 students could soon return to school for the first time since March when the pandemic forced campuses to close.
The Folsom Cordova Unified School Board voted Thursday night to use a hybrid model for its students to return to classrooms part time. The vote came in anticipation of schools in the county getting the greenlight to reopen after moving into the red tier of California’s reopening guidelines.
The jump into a less restrictive tier on Sept. 29 meant that Sacramento County restaurants, churches, movie theaters and gyms could reopen indoors with limited capacity. After two weeks of being in the red tier, schools would be allowed to open for some on-site classes.
Folsom Cordova is one of only two Sacramento County school districts set a date for reopening under the new guidelines, according to The Sacramento Bee. Arcohe Union School District, a small district with only one campus, is set to reopen on Nov. 9. The county has previously approved waivers for some elementary schools.
Charter and public elementary school students in the district will return to class Nov. 9 but only for morning and noon sessions on Tuesdays through Fridays. Each session will last for about two and a half hours, with an hour break in between.
For TK through first grade, kids will have 25 minutes of daily asynchronous time, while second and third graders will have 75 minutes, and fourth and fifth graders receive 85 minutes per day.
Middle schoolers will return to hybrid schedules on Nov. 30, and high schoolers will return on Jan. 4, 2021. Students will be split into two groups — Group A will meet on Tuesday and Thursday, and Group B will meet on Wednesday and Friday.
Mondays will be used for professional development.
Students who opt out will continue distance learning through the district’s virtual academy or do home school or independent study.
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