LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- More than a year after Jefferson County Public Schools ceased classroom learning because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Superintendent Marty Pollio said the district is ready to welcome students back inside schools starting Wednesday.
“I've been looking forward to this day for a long time, and we had really hoped that it would come earlier,” Pollio said Tuesday during a news conference at Semple Elementary. “But we are so excited that we are going to be opening these doors tomorrow.”
JCPS elementary schools will be the first to reopen classrooms Wednesday, starting with students in kindergarten through second grade whose last names start with letters A-K and every student in those grades who get special education services.
“Tomorrow will be a little bit even more important to me just because our kids have been out for a great deal of time and it's an opportunity to bring them back," Pollio said adding that he expects to visit at least five schools Wednesday. "So these opening days are going to be special ... I'm so excited to welcome 7,000 students back to our JCPS schools tomorrow.”
Students at all grade levels, except for those receiving special education services in elementary schools, will eventually return to classrooms on hybrid schedules starting Wednesday. Students in kindergarten through fifth grade whose last names start with L-Z will return to classes Thursday and Friday, and middle and high schools will reopen on April 5 immediately after spring break.
All students will learn remotely on Wednesdays under the district’s reopening plan, which was approved by the Jefferson County Board of Education on a 4-3 vote.
The district expects more than 60% of its more than 96,000 students will return to classrooms once they reopen based on the results of a districtwide survey.
“We have probably around 35% of our kids in JCPS who will continue to learn virtually, and we are committed to doing that and providing that same (nontraditional instruction) experience that they've had, and what we found is a lot of kids that may not have thrived in the traditional academic setting are doing well,” Pollio said. “And we want to keep that going for them if that's what the family chooses.”
School operations will be different once students and staff return to schools during the COVID-19 pandemic, such as wearing masks and practicing social distancing.
Pollio anticipates the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will halve its recommended social distancing guidance in schools from 6 feet to 3 feet based on recent comments from Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
“I've been in several schools, and they are ready to go,” Pollio said.
Clee Hall, who teaches third grade at Semple Elementary, is ready to see his students back in class, starting with half on Thursday.
"This year right here was totally different from any other year," he said. "... I have so many students, and it's hard to get them all on the computer. It's hard to get them through some of the lessons. That's one of the main reasons I'm so excited to bring them back."
JCPS will soon have a better handle on where students are academically after about a year of remote learning, and Pollio and other leaders are bracing for a multi-year effort to help students who have struggled while classrooms remained closed to in-person instruction.
Pollio has suggested extending the school calendar and offering targeted summer programs for tens of thousands of students as part of the district’s academic recovery strategy. This summer, Pollio said JCPS would likely need to limit capacity at summer programs because of COVID-19.
Adding 10 days to the district’s calendar would cost about $30 million, “but it's definitely worth it over the next several years to mitigate that learning loss,” he said.
“We’re going to have to be much more intentional about that and develop a three- to five- to 10-year plan,” Pollio said Tuesday.
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