Warren County School Board, WCPS tackle COVID-19 era of education

Like every school district around the nation, Warren County Public Schools (WCPS) is trying to figure out how summer and fall instruction will work this year as the nation continues to grapple with the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Warren County School Board and WCPS have quite a task ahead of them.

On June 9, WCPS received the Virginia Department of Education’s comprehensive plan, which includes a phased approach for Virginia schools to slowly resume in-person classes for summer school and the upcoming academic year. WCPS Interim Superintendent Melody Sheppard said WCPS staff are currently reading through the document and planning for the reopening of schools.

All PreK-12 schools in Virginia are required to deliver new instruction to students for the 2020-2021 academic year, regardless of the operational status of school buildings, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam said last week. The PreK-12 guidance is aligned with the phases outlined in the Forward Virginia blueprint and provides opportunities for school divisions to begin offering in-person instruction to specific student groups.

There are currently three phases to the plan, WCPS Interim Superintendent Melody Sheppard told School Board members during the work session portion of its June 17 regular meeting, and WCPS began phase one when schools closed due to the pandemic on March 13. Photos and video by Mark Williams, Royal Examiner.

“We are currently in phase two, which is virtual learning for most students,” said Sheppard, adding that students in grades “pre-K through three, English learners and students with disabilities are eligible for in-person instruction.”

Continuing phase two for the summer, WCPS plans to offer virtual remediation in math and reading at the elementary level, said Sheppard, and parents may elect to have their child or children participate in one or both courses.

At the middle school level, WCPS will start virtual instruction within the next few weeks and recovery programs already have begun at both WCPS high schools. “So, our summer school programs are gearing up or have already started, and they will all be virtual,” Sheppard added.

WCPS plans to start phase three as the 2020-2021 school year begins in the fall. According to the governor’s plan, 6-feet of social distancing will be required in the school buildings and on the school buses, which “is going to be problematic,” said Sheppard.

“Our buses and our classroom space are really what will drive how we do school next year,” she said.

For example, WCPS Transportation Director Aaron Mitchell thus far has put together several scenarios on the number of students that WCPS can transport daily, Sheppard explained.

WCPS also is working on a healthcare plan that includes disinfection protocols and increased cleaning within the school buildings and on the school buses. The district also is coordinating with the local health department on the WCPS plan for reopening school, she said.

“As soon as all the details are worked out, we will submit our plan to the Virginia Department of Education,” she said. “Our plan is to offer as much in-person instruction as possible, however, we know that our buildings and our transportation won’t allow us to have all students in the buildings at one time.”

WCPS also tentatively plans to offer virtual learning, particularly for all students in grades 5-12 whose parents are not comfortable sending their children back to the school building due to COVID-19.

Additionally, the school division is scrutinizing the current 2020-2021 school year calendar, but anticipates reopening on August 11, although “there may be some changes” after that date, said Sheppard.

“There has been some discussion that there will be a resurgence [in the spread of COVID-19] in October and what that’s going to look like. So, we are prepared to move to virtual instruction if we need to,” she said.

The interim superintendent stressed that WCPS is in the infancy stages of preparation for the upcoming academic school year and is “working diligently to ensure it’s going to go as smoothly as possible.”

School Board Chairman Arnold Williams, Jr. asked Sheppard about busing plans.

School Board Chairman Arnold Williams, Jr. asked Sheppard about busing plans, particularly regarding the younger students. She told him that with “mitigating strategies in place,” WCPS would be able to put one student in each school bus seat.

“What we’ve worked out is that we could transport three elementary schools at one time, and we could transport our high schools in two separate sections,” Sheppard said. “We’re also looking at instead of a six-and-a-half-hour day, maybe a five-hour day, but none of this is set in stone at this point; these are just things we are considering.”

Also, most WCPS drivers work a four-and-a-half-hour shift and the district is considering a possible increase in hours, though she didn’t say how many hours total.

“We would be asking them to work a much longer day,” said Sheppard, adding that WCPS likely will have to spend some of its forthcoming federal pandemic emergency relief funds to cover the increased expense related to bus driver wages.

“Everyone is working hard to figure this out,” said School Board Vice Chair Catherine Bower. “It’s going to be tough.”

To utilize space during social distancing, Chairman Williams suggested maybe splitting up classes into multiple rooms. Sheppard said that every available space within a school building will be used, including gyms, auxiliary gyms, libraries, and cafeterias. “There will not be a space in a building that likely does not have kids in it, except for maybe our hallways when students need to use the bathroom or move between classes,” she said.

Serving breakfasts and lunches within the classrooms rather than the cafeterias also are under consideration, according to Sheppard.

“We are really going through all the scenarios to make sure we do everything we have to do to make sure our students are safe and healthy,” said Sheppard.

The hardest part, said School Board member Ralph Rinaldi, is going to be transporting students to the schools. He said he has told residents who have called him that “Everything is up in the air right now, but we’re planning for everything.”

None of the WCPS plans are finalized, reiterated Sheppard, “but we really need to start putting things into place and into writing. But we need to get it all figured out first.”

During the School Board’s regular meeting, which was held at Skyline Middle School, members unanimously approved several items, with present members Williams, Bower, and Rinaldi joined by School Board members James Wells and Kristen Pence.

For instance, the School Board unanimously passed two change order requests. The approved Change Order Number 002 totaling $202,488 authorizes Lantz Construction of Winchester Inc. to replace the existing flat roof with a membrane roof system and to relocate and resize the existing ductwork at A. S. Rhodes Elementary School. Approval of Change Order 003 totals $359,400 and authorizes Lantz Construction to provide and install casework and sinks at A. S. Rhodes Elementary School. Both jobs are part of the school’s ongoing renovation.

The Warren County School Board also approved the almost $25,000 purchase of the Alpha Gantry Computer Numerical Control (CNC) system, which will be financed through the CTE Competitive Innovative Equipment Grant.

“The Blue Ridge Technical Center has been awarded a CTE Competitive Innovative Program Equipment Grant for High-Demand and Fast-Growth Industry Sectors. This grant was written with a request of funds to purchase an Alpha Gantry CNC package from ShopBot Tools Inc.,” explained WCPS Career and Technical Education (CTE) Principal Jane Baker. “This system will support our Carpentry III and Project Lead the Way Engineering and Technology Transfer courses and provide industry-driven skill development opportunities to our students.”
The board also unanimously approved an instructional technology coordinator position.

“The demands on instructional technology support have increased since COVID-19 including the need for additional support for instruction with online learning initiatives,” WCPS Technology Director Timothy Grant told the board members.

“The demands on instructional technology support have increased since COVID-19 including the need for additional support for instruction with online learning initiatives,” WCPS Technology Director Timothy Grant told the board members. “We anticipate this type of support will be a continued need for our teachers and students.”

The goal of the instructional technology coordinator is to work with the WCPS Instructional Resource Team to ensure that instructional goals and technology needs for students and teachers are aligned. The coordinator also would support the district’s Technology Integration Coaches, Grant said.

Also regarding technology, the School Board unanimously approved the purchase of Chromebooks in the amount not to exceed $452,200. The funds for the purchase will come from the WCPS 2019-2020 technology budget, a grant from the new Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, and the school district’s 2020-2021 fiscal year budget, said Grant.

To view the entire June 17 School Board meeting, which also included a personnel update, watch the Royal Examiner video below.