Students and teachers will be required to wear masks. Classrooms will be reconfigured to spread students apart.
Hallways will be emptier. Recess and lunch will be far less social. Assemblies and field trips will be nonexistent.
These are only some of the many restrictions the Shawnee Mission school district could implement when schools reopen next month, according to a draft plan released Wednesday night. After closing in March because of the coronavirus pandemic, Kansas City area schools are preparing to bring students back to in-person classes with a laundry list of new precautions.
Kansas districts have been awaiting recommendations from the state on how to safely reopen. The state board of education is expected to vote on the guidelines next Wednesday. But in the meantime, districts have been crafting their own plans — and Shawnee Mission is the first major Johnson County district to release its ideas to the public.
As COVID-19 cases surge, many parents and teachers are anxious to learn what classrooms will look like for their students in the fall semester. President Donald Trump has been pushing for schools across the country to reopen, dismissing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s “very tough & expensive guidelines,” as he said on Twitter, and threatening to cut federal funding for districts that don’t reopen classrooms.
On the Missouri side of the Kansas City metro, some elementary students in the North Kansas City district are wrapping up their first week of in-person summer school. The district has mandated masks, limited enrollment, required daily wellness checks and had students eat lunch in classrooms.
Next week, the district’s Crestview and Winnwood elementary schools, which operate on a year-round schedule, will reopen for in-person classes. But families do have the option to choose virtual learning instead.
The Missouri School Boards’ Association provided reopening guidelines to districts this spring. And on Thursday, state officials released a document providing clarity to districts, including how to screen for COVID-19 symptoms, how to enforce social distancing and the importance of requiring face coverings.
In Kansas, school districts have been planning for three scenarios next month: Students returning to in-person classes, students staying home and learning online, or a mix of the two.
Shawnee Mission’s preliminary plan explains how each of those scenarios might play out. Plans could change depending on the guidance the state provides, community feedback, as well as the toll the virus takes on the region in the coming weeks.
“This will be a year of new and unique challenges,” Superintendent Mike Fulton said in a statement. “It will take a considerable amount of teamwork as we navigate what could be changing realities throughout the school year. This draft plan provides a road map on what to expect, and we hope helps all of us be better prepared to adjust our personal lives based on changing conditions.”
Plans are flexible
Many parents will have a choice to make this summer when they enroll their students in school.
The Olathe district, for example, will give families the option to either return to in-person classes or take part in virtual learning. Johnson County districts have been surveying parents to determine how many feel comfortable sending their students back to class.
“When online registration opens on July 13, we will provide as much information as possible on what school will look like so our parents will be able to make a decision at registration about whether they would like their child to attend in-person or remote learning,” Olathe Superintendent John Allison said in a statement.
“This year will be the most unique school year in history. But our attitudes and resolve will help bring a sense of calm to our students. Together, we’ll make this work.”
Both Olathe and Blue Valley are planning to start in-person classes on Aug. 13, and officials in the districts expect to release their guidelines for reopening later this month. In a message to families, Blue Valley Superintendent Tonya Merrigan said that the district will share more information on July 16, and that families have the option of in-person or remote learning.
Shawnee Mission postponed the start of the school year to Aug. 17 to give staff more time to train and implement safety procedures.
According to Shawnee Mission’s plan, the district would likely use its in-person safety precautions if at least 80% of students return to class. If nearly all students stay home, the district would follow its remote learning guidelines.
Schools would operate on a “blended model” if about half of the students report to school at any given time.
“For example, one student might attend school two days a week and learn from home the other three weekdays,” officials wrote in the plan.
The plan states that social distancing “cannot be guaranteed” if most students return to the classroom. Social distancing will be possible if at least half of all students learn remotely, officials wrote.
Fulton said the district is working to provide consistent instruction, whether students learn in-person or online. That will likely mean a move to more personalized, competency-based learning. A draft of statewide reopening guidance to schools, previously obtained by The Star, provided districts the framework to adopt such an approach, where students move at their own pace and focus on mastering a set of skills.
The state’s draft document said that changes made during the pandemic could affect how students are taught for the coming decades.
“Whether on-site or remote, the curriculum will focus on student mastery of important priority standards and assessments that provide feedback to students on their learning. We will be providing direct instruction, taking attendance, and students will receive grades,” Fulton wrote.
Safety precautions
While many districts have yet to release their plans for preventing the spread of coronavirus, Shawnee Mission’s draft guidelines show that schools will likely look different than they ever have before.
The district released separate guidance for elementary, middle and high schools. It will follow CDC and state and local health officials’ guidance on requiring masks, the plan states. Johnson County is abiding by Kansas’ statewide mandate requiring masks to be worn in public, but it is unclear how long that will remain in place.
According to the plan, Shawnee Mission could require students to wear masks for most of the school day, especially in gyms, hallways and in line to grab lunch. There are some exceptions, such as outside during recess as long as social distancing is followed, or for students with certain health conditions or special needs.
Teachers and visitors also would be required to wear masks or face shields. Floor markings could be placed in cafeterias and other areas to instruct students to stay six feet apart. Hand sanitizer will be available throughout the buildings.
In classrooms, furniture could be removed or pushed apart to allow for more social distancing. But how many students will be able to sit in a classroom is not specified for each grade level.
Guidelines for middle schools are more detailed. The plan states that classrooms should accommodate seven feet of social distancing. For a typical 800-square-foot classroom, that means a maximum of 16 people, according to the plan.
“What do we do if there are more than 16-18 in a given classroom? We cannot answer this right now,” officials wrote.
Desks will be cleaned at the beginning and end of each class period. Hand rails and other high-touch surfaces in hallways and restrooms will be consistently cleaned throughout the day. Physical education and playground equipment will be limited to small groups or individuals, then frequently sanitized.
And students’ schedules are poised to drastically change. Students may only take in-person classes on certain days of each week. The number of students in hallways, restrooms, gyms and other communal areas will be limited — and one-way traffic could be implemented.
Arrival and dismissal times could be staggered. Students will be spread apart in cafeterias, or may be instructed to eat outdoors, in classrooms or other common areas. Field trips and all-school assemblies will likely not be allowed.
The details of the plan could change after the district receives the state’s guidance. Also, families are asked to respond to a survey, sent in a districtwide email, to provide feedback.
