How will Manatee schools reopen in August? Superintendent Saunders shares a vision

Manatee County students could remain in their online classrooms or return to their schools in August, as the COVID-19 pandemic continues. But the likely option for the 2020-2021 school year is somewhere in between.

Some students fare better with in-person classes, and thousands of children are eager to see their friends. Still, there will likely be a need for social distancing in school buses, cafeterias and classrooms, which house approximately 50,000 students district-wide.

As of Tuesday, the district was eyeing a “blended” model, which involves a mix of in-person and online learning, Superintendent Cynthia Saunders said.

“In my opinion, I don’t know how we can adhere to any social distancing or those requirements established by the CDC with 100 percent of students on campus,” she said.

Saunders said the tentative options — completely reopen traditional schools, continue with full-time online learning or move to the blended model — would be finalized and distributed for community input in the coming weeks.

And every option, she said, would allow students to continue with online learning if their parents felt uncomfortable with a return to school.

“They could move in and out of their school based on their comfort level,” Saunders said. “They would still be registered in their school, with their teacher. If you were going to be a senior, you would graduate with our diploma.”

Some students could learn in school, others online

Under the blended model, Manatee County schools would invite approximately 50 percent of their students on campus each day, and every campus would redesign its common areas, creating more space between students.

The other students would attend class on Schoology, the district’s online learning platform, and all students would rotate between in-person and online classes each week.

“I prefer the traditional brick and mortar,” Saunders said. “I go into schools weekly and it’s just odd to walk into the building during a school year and there are no students there. I prefer seeing them. I prefer the excitement you get in everything we deliver and all that comes with a traditional education.”

“I’m not sure we will see that in August,” she continued. “If you’re asking me today, based on the scenario of cases and where we’re looking as a state and a nation, I would say probably the blended model is our best hope.”

Students, employees would be screened for possible illness

In-person learning would also include the daily screening of employees and students. Both would receive a mask and have their temperature checked at the front door, and anyone with a temperature of 100.4 or greater would be sent home, based on guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“Students arriving by buses are exempt as they would have already had a screening before getting on the bus,” a draft plan states. “Car riders may also be checked in the car rider loop.”

The draft also includes guidelines for responding to a positive COVID-19 case. Under the proposal, school administrators would contact the district’s chief safety officer and identify the affected staff and students.

The affected school would also “dismiss students and most staff” for two to five days while the campus is disinfected, though “partial school closures” are possible, depending on “the exposures and the parts of the school/buildings affected.”

Manatee’s plan largely mirrors guidance from the CDC and the Florida Association of District School Superintendents (FADSS). Both said it was vital to protect older adults and anyone with an underlying medical condition.

The superintendents’ association said a blended model was likely at the start of school, and it urged the use of daily screening and protective equipment.

Safety measures could be expensive

Every building should have a digital thermometer, and every classroom should have masks, gloves, soap, sanitizer and other supplies, according to the group’s recommended guidelines.

Manatee is competing with school districts throughout Florida to purchase the same supplies, and Saunders anticipated a cost of about $1 million to secure the needed safety equipment.

“We are concerned — because we’ve been ordering thermometers and other things — about even being able to get these items in time,” she said. “We’ve ordered many things and they’re not in yet.”

In the immediate future, Manatee was continuing with online learning during its summer classes. Schools also planned to collect the district-provided laptops from students who were graduating or moving to a new campus.

Many of the district laptops would remain in students’ hands, however, because some classes are sure to continue online in the 2020-2021 school year.

The unanswered questions

Once the reopening details are finalized, the district plans to consult with its strategic planning group, along with the school board and the teachers’ union. It also plans to solicit feedback from community organizations and the general public.

Requesting feedback on the statewide reopening of schools, the Florida Department of Education recently launched its own five-question survey. The questionnaire is available at surveymonkey.com/r/dvtp3kf.

There was much planning to be done, Saunders said. How could the district work with community organizations and provide child care for students who continued with online learning? And how do grades work under a blended model?

A “blended” school year might be on the horizon, Saunders said, but the plans could always change. If the COVID-19 pandemic worsened, the district might revert to full-time online learning, and if the outlook improved, it might transition back to a regular school day.

“We all have to be flexible,” Saunders said. “I think it’s going to be a very fluid year.”

This story was originally published May 19, 2020 at 4:21 PM.