RETURN TO SCHOOL PLANNING MEETING

On Thursday, June 18, Dr. Mark Jones convened a meeting of PCS school staff to discuss returning to school for the 2020-2021 school year. Dr. Jones provided a PowerPoint presentation (a copy is attached in your email) outlining Virginia’s response to COVID-19, the phases of reopening Virginia, and the PCS plan. During the meeting, Dr. Jones stated there were opportunities for staff to be involved in the return to school planning process by joining one of the following committees: Employees, Instruction, Schedule, Virtual/Online Learning, Special Education/Health, Transportation, Hygiene, Buildings, and Social/Emotional Wellness.
Dr. Jones indicated by Thursday, June 25, 2020, Reopening Plan Team chairs will provide a copy of a draft plan for each of the following: Employees, Instruction, Schedule, Virtual/Online Learning, Special Education/Health, Transportation, Hygiene, Buildings, and Social/Emotional Wellness. The input he received during the June 18 meeting was shared with chairs on Monday, June 22.
Some of the questions posed and answered in the GoogleMeet chat feature, as well as live, included:
 I know this is hypothetical but what is the plan if a teacher/student/staff contracts COVID...will that result in immediate closure of the buildings and a reversion to Phase I were we are all online?
 What about the plans that we wrote this past summer? Where do those fit in?
 Are you considering options for teachers who are medically fragile or live with people who are and do not feel comfortable going back into the classroom?
 If they (lessons) were recorded, the lessons could be posted to a Google Classroom that students could have access to.
 Dr. Jones, will there be extra cleaning and sanitizing of school buildings and classrooms?
Dr. Jones stated, “ There are many issues to consider as we plan to reopen.” Superintendent Jones plans to meet with the entire Teacher Planning Committee again on Thursday, July 9. Too, he has called virtual meetings of the Teacher’s Advisory, Citizen’s Advisory, and Support Staff Advisory Committees as well as the Committee for Minority Concerns to be conducted during the first and second full weeks of July to discuss reopening schools. Dr. Jones indicated after drafts are reviewed, team chairs will reconvene their meetings to prepare a final draft for review as the final plan will be submitted to the School Board for approval.