Asheville City Schools responds to questions about the upcoming school year

Press release from Asheville City Schools:

The following message is from Gene Freeman, new superintendent of Asheville City Schools, addressing community questions about plans for the upcoming school year. 

First and foremost, thank you to several of our families who reached out, asking for more details following yesterday’s communication.  In response to your questions, we’ve compiled the following answers.

Question:  My child falls in the category of a rising Kindergartener – 6th Grader.  When will I learn if they’re attending Week A or Week B?

• Answer:  Our elementary and middle school principals will inform your family as to whether your child will be attending Week A or Week B by Friday, July 31st.

Question:  I understand that Asheville City Schools is opting to continue with remote instruction for rising 7th – 12th Graders.  Will this be for the entire year?

• Answer:  Our goal is for rising 7th and 8th Graders to begin our Plan B, hybrid model following the first nine-week period.  Our goal is for high school students to start transitioning to Plan B at the start of the second semester.  These plans are subject to change and will be contingent on the latest guidance from Governor Cooper, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction as well as the Buncombe County Health Department at the time of the anticipated transition.

Question:  During Governor Cooper’s July 14th announcement, he said all schools could utilize the hybrid model.  Why is Asheville City Schools continuing to access remote instruction for rising 7th – 12th Graders?

• Answer:
• Regardless of which school your child attends, minimizing the number of students of any given campus will be key in stopping the spread of COVID-19.  Due to the unique layouts of Asheville Middle School, Montford North Star Academy, and the Asheville High School & SILSA campus, we believe it’s imperative to have a slower reopening plan that allows us to carefully plan and maintain safety protocols for campuses, taking in account the movement required in the 7th-12th Grade student schedules and higher teacher to student ratio in classrooms.
• Each middle and high school student has an individual schedule, tailor-made to fit their unique academic needs and interests.  This means our students don’t move throughout the building as an entire class.  Therefore, it’s incredibly difficult to maintain required social distancing throughout the school day for each and every student.
• Our rising 7th – 12th Graders are the most familiar with a remote learning environment, as their at-home learning started with CANVAS classrooms on March 17th.  Our 2019-2020 elementary students began their at-home learning with paper packets and only began transitioning to some virtual learning in April.

Question:  My child falls into the category of a rising 7th – 12th Grader.  When will I know if their schedule has changed because their classes are now remote?

• Answer: Traditionally, students receive their schedules by the second week of August. Consistent with our traditional timeline, students will know which classes they are taking when they receive their schedule. Additionally, that is also when they will learn whether one or more of their classes includes optional, in-person lab hours that will occur on their middle or high school’s campus.

Question:  Has a screening protocol been established for when students and staff members arrive at school?

• Answer:
• Yes, in accordance with the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, Asheville City Schools will carry out daily health screenings.
• If there is a positive diagnosis amongst one of our students or staff members, we will notify the Buncombe County Health and Human Services (as required by NCGS § 130A-136) and work with them to follow their procedures such as contact tracing.
• Asheville City Schools will follow the directions shared by Buncombe County Health and Human Service to carry out their recommendations for contacting students, staff and families as well as their specific cleaning protocols.
• We will consult with our local health department to determine whether they believe closing a classroom or an entire campus is required.  Please take note that there may be no need to close the school if BCHHS determines that close contacts are excluded and there is sufficient space to continue normal operations.

Again, I’d like to reiterate that we fully understand that no Return to Learn Plan is perfect.  However, we are dedicated to keeping our students and staff members safe, educating your children and being as transparent as possible.  We look forward to sharing more with you about our sanitation and transportation protocols, the actions we’ve put in place to support your child’s mental health as well as what your child’s day could look like in the next few days.