CLEVELAND — What is the plan to reopen Cleveland schools? We will have those answers very soon as the Cleveland Metropolitan School District will reveal their full reopening plan by Friday, July 24.
Eric Gordon, the district's CEO, has also revealed opening dates for the upcoming school year as follows:
- Aug. 24 is the first day for students at year-round schools.
- Sept. 8 is the first day for students in all other CMSD schools.
The three weeks before Labor Day will be used for teacher training and support to make sure everyone is ready to go for a very different 2020-2021 school year.
Gordon says the school system is strongly leaning toward a cohort system where one group of students would attend school Mondays and Tuesdays then learn remotely, while the other group will learn remotely and attend school on Thursdays and Fridays. He also says facemasks will be required for students grade 3 and up.
The system is also making sure teachers feel safe in the classroom.
"Making sure we have sanitizer pumps throughout our school building. Having planned hand washing breaks. Encouraging lots of outdoor activities while the weather is still nice, all of those things are designed to layer safety precautions to ensure the best possible safe experience," Gordon told 3News' Romney Smith on Tuesday.
The district also provided a back-to-school guide that outlines their priorities and anticipated changes, which you can read in the document at the bottom of this story.
"Given the strict health and safety guidance for social distancing and deep cleaning routines, it is highly likely that a 'hybrid learning' scenario will be in play, with scholars learning in-person for part of the time and using a blended learning approach for other times," district officials said. "While we will do our very best to provide as many in-person learning opportunities for our scholars as possible, we will also rely on Ohio's Public Health Advisory System in making system-wide decisions."
Gordon offered more information about the school's plan to reopen in a letter that was distributed Tuesday morning. You can read a portion of that letter below:
Our team has been working diligently to ensure our students, staff, families and facilities are fully prepared for what we expect to be a very different school year, due to the health and safety guidelines required for Ohio's schools, as announced by Ohio Governor Mike DeWine on July 2.
I will be sharing our full reopening plan with our community by July 24. That plan will include a variety of options for how students will experience learning and teaching this year, based largely on the city and county's risk level as reported by Ohio's Public Health Advisory System.
The first day of school for students of our year-round schools will be on Monday, August 24 this year, with students in all other CMSD schools starting on Tuesday, September 8. To fully prepare families for the start of school, our Family & Community Engagement Team is collaborating with the Mayor's Office to revise the format of our annual Back to School Fair. Your principal will soon share information about distribution of uniforms, school supplies and other items needed to fully prepare our scholars and families for the start of school.
If you have not already done so, please make sure you have registered your child's school choices by visiting our online enrollment portal at ChooseCMSD.org or by calling 216-838-3675. Our enrollment team is happy to help you with any support you may need.
CMSD remains committed to not only ensuring students, families and staff have the materials and supports needed for a safe reopening, but we are equally committed to ensuring you have the information needed to have confidence in our reopening plans. Your feedback on our remote learning survey this spring and your participation in our current parent survey is essential for ensuring that our final reopening plans reflect your hopes and concerns. Additionally, we are also collaborating with out-of-school providers, agencies and partners to identify how best to align services and supports that many families will need when students are not in school are are learning remotely.
Explore the district's back-to-school document below:
MORE COVERAGE:
- RELATED: Local physician parents weigh in on back-to-school considerations in Ohio
- RELATED: DeVos says schools shouldn't get federal funds if they don't reopen in the fall
- RELATED: Watch again: Gov. DeWine announces K-12 school reopening guidance, new COVID-19 alert system
- RELATED: Green Local Schools preliminary reopening plan: Parents choose if their child attends in-person classes or learns from home
- RELATED: Reopening Report Card: 3News' Romney Smith examines the options Northeast Ohio school districts are exploring