Though the start of school is less than two months away for more than half of Alabama’s school districts, there are still a lot of unknowns about what classrooms might look like and just how many students will actually return, leaving school officials stressed and with many decisions left to make.
Typically, by this time, school and district officials would be finalizing master schedules showing which students are in which classrooms with which teachers at which time of the day.
Not this year, according to Ryan Hollingsworth, the director of the State Superintendents Association. "There are a million questions, and it's what, June 18th?"
“Superintendents are waiting to get more information on the state’s reopening plan with (state superintendent) Dr. Mackey,” Hollingsworth said. School officials aren’t yet sure how much flexibility the plan will contain and that makes it hard to finalize anything right now.
Even after the plan is made public, Hollingsworth said, it's still up to local school officials to get schools reopened.
Mackey is set to share that plan with the state's 138 local superintendents at the SSA conference next week in Gulf Shores.
Alabama’s reopening plan will be released to the public on June 25, Mackey told AL.com. Some states began releasing their plans last week.
Hollingsworth is a member of the statewide task force working on the plan to reopen schools in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic that shut down all schools in mid-March. He said the plan continues to change as more information becomes known about COVID-19 and how best to keep students and teachers safe.
A big problem for school officials is that there is still a lot that is unknown about how COVID-19 spreads and what is known continues to change. "We're still learning about how the virus affects children," he said.
More local data about the spread of COVID-19 is needed for school officials to make ongoing good decisions about how to handle groups of students and whether, for example, schools should be closed or daily schedules should be modified, he said.
"We pray for data at the ZIP code level," he said.
And when positive cases are found at school, he added, contact tracing will become even more important to keep communities safe.
Districts are in various stages of preparation, he said, and while some have already fully developed their plans and are waiting to see if it is compatible with whatever the state plan says, others are just beginning the process of surveying their communities about the level of interest in continuing school remotely versus returning to classrooms.
Knowing how many students will be in buildings or learning remotely at home affects decisions about everything from how many teachers are needed to where buses will run to how much food will be needed for school meals.
Mackey said some districts have found as many as 20% of students may choose to attend school virtually. The state department is finalizing the purchase of a statewide virtual school platform that local schools can use if they don't already have a virtual program of their own.
Hoover City Schools recently released results from a survey they conducted showing less than half of parents and teachers are comfortable returning to school buildings when school starts this year. Officials announced Wednesday they will offer a full K-12 virtual school option for students.
Huntsville City Schools has already started enrolling students in their virtual school, called Huntsville Virtual Academy. Registration opened June 5 and is open to students zoned to attend school within the district.
School starts August 6 in Hoover and August 17 in Huntsville.
Though a lot of families may choose virtual school, Hollingsworth expects the majority of the state's 730,000 students to return to traditional classrooms, bringing up a whole new set of questions.
"Even if I'm in school," Hollingsworth asked, "what kind of school am I having?"
Guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend that if schools open, they may want to keep children in small groups throughout the school day, forego recess, and eat meals inside the classroom rather than the cafeteria.
Beyond any orders from local or state public health departments or requirements from the state department of education, local school officials will have final say over which guidelines are put into place inside school buildings and buses.
Some districts are posting regular updates on social media, letting their communities know where they are in the planning process. Jefferson County Superintendent Walter Gonsoulin said in a YouTube video posted Thursday that he expects to release more information after July 4. Students there will start back to school on August 25.
Related: Alabama college enrollment will be impacted by coronavirus, official says
Related: Teachers in masks, lunches in classrooms, CDC guidelines envision stark new year for schools
Update: The start date for Hoover City Schools is August 6, not August 17. We apologize for the error.
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Alabama schools: 8 weeks out, still no plan - AL.com
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