In the Keys, all students can return to classrooms full time on March 29
The Monroe County School District on Tuesday said it will offer full-time, in-person instruction for all students starting March 29 in response to a state order.
But Superintendent Theresa Axford said the schools may have trouble maintaining social distancing in classes.
“While we will do our best to make this a safe transition, please be aware we may have difficulty ensuring students maintain a safe distance from one another while they are attending classes in-person,” Axford said in a statement.
“Students, staff and visitors will still be required to wear masks and we will continue to emphasize the importance of hand-washing and sanitizing at all times.”
Currently, 68 percent of Monroe students are attending in-person school every day, according to Axford. On Tuesday, the district’s total enrollment was 8,741.
Students in 6-12 grades were alternating between in-person and remote learning
Monroe, unlike other districts in South Florida, has had students in grades 6 through 12 dividing their time attending classes in school buildings and learning remotely.
On Friday, Florida Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran sent a letter to Axford saying a state emergency order requires school districts to open school buildings at least five days a week for students who choose in-person instruction.
Axford said Tuesday her priority has always been to return all students to full-time, in-person classes but the district still has concerns about the spread of COVID-19.
“We have not done this before because issues of community spread and juvenile transmission rates have dictated otherwise,” said Axford. “Those factors are still issues in Monroe County and remain issues for our district.”
After closing school buildings and starting remote learning in mid-March last year, Monroe schools fully reopened Sept. 14 to students in pre-K through grade 5 who wanted to return to the classroom.
But students in grades 6 through 12 returned to school buildings on a part-time basis, attending virtual school on days they are not in the classroom in what the district calls an “A/B” schedule.
Concerns about room for social distancing in classrooms
Social distancing won’t work with the larger grades, said Holly Hummell-Gorman, president of United Teachers of Monroe, the teachers’ union.
“That’s going to be impossible,” she said. “You can’t have a minimum of 6 feet of social distancing with all the students there because we don’t have enough space and we don’t have enough staff.”
The district asks parents to complete a survey about their plans for their child’s attendance at school.
Options include keeping students on the A/B schedule for the rest of the school year or sending their child back to full-time in-person for the remainder of the school year.
Children in full-time virtual school will have the option to continue for the rest of the year or to return to full-time in-person classes.
The survey’s choices for full-time, in-person learning state, “I understand that as much social distancing as possible will be attempted but CDC guidelines of six feet may not be possible.”
Paper copies of the survey will be available at all county public schools, which includes grades 6 through 12.
The district is working on a new bus schedule and will announce it as soon as it is finalized, said schools spokeswoman Becky Herrin.
Spring break for Monroe schools is March 22-26.
This story was originally published March 9, 2021 at 5:29 PM.
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