Principals from six Frederick County schools, including Monocacy Middle and Oakdale High, updated the Board of Education Wednesday ahead of the in-person learning plan that puts students back in classrooms two days a week, starting Tuesday, Feb. 16 in the Maryland county.
“At the elementary level, we’ve assured that we have masks, hand sanitizer, gloves, student masks, as well as adult masks, in all of our entrance and exits; so that we have that ready to go, should we need it as students enter or exit the building,” said Ballenger Creek Elementary School Principle Megan Stein.
“We’ve also deployed disposable student masks in all of our hybrid classrooms, in the event that we know elementary students may need to use the frequency of masks and exchange those out throughout the day,” Stein told board members.
Besides ensuring every county school has plenty of protective equipment for both students and staffers, shuttling kids in and out of buildings and classrooms, along with cleaning and disinfecting protocols, were discussed.
“This has really been an awesome, collaborative undertaking across our school system,” said Jamie Aliveto, executive director of System Accountability and School Administration at Frederick County Public Schools.
She said school principals had formed “reopening committees” that included “custodians, support staff, teachers and had a real team approach in determining their plans for their specific school context.”
Students who participate in hybrid learning would attend classrooms two days per week, with virtual instruction on the remaining three days.
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan said in January his administration was urging all school districts to begin preparing for a return to hybrid learning no later than March 1. Public schools in Frederick County will be among the first in the D.C. area to go back.
The school district already resumed winter sports on Jan. 25.
Hybrid learning plans at other suburban Maryland schools:
- The Montgomery County School Board voted this week to start bringing kids back on March 1
- The Howard County Public School System will start bringing kids back on March 1.
- Charles County Public Schools will start bringing kids back on March 22.
- Anne Arundel County Public Schools will start bringing kids back on March 1.
- Prince George’s County has not yet announced plans for bringing students back.