School closures, virtual learning, vaccinations, mask requirements, and other talking points related to COVID-19 seem to be on the majority of peoples’ minds lately. With the recent surge of COVID-19 that has affected Attala County and Mississippi as a whole, local school districts are refocusing on ways to put the final nail in the virus’s coffin once and for all.
The districts have been working to make the best learning decisions for their students. Last week, the Attala County School District shut down Ethel High School for two weeks and moved to virtual learning after experiencing an outbreak — three or more positive cases in at least three classrooms. The same was true for Kosciusko High School and Kosciusko Middle Elementary.
According to recent reports, ACSD has had fifteen total positive cases among students within the district: nine at Ethel, two at Greenlee, and four at Long Creek. Following KHS and KME outbreaks, the combination of KLE, KUE, KJH, and district support staff have seven staff members testing positive along with 27 students. There are 88 total people quarantining. At KLE, three staff members and 11 students tested positive. At KUE, no staff members and eight students tested positive. At KJH, two staff members and eight students tested positive.
In a special called board meeting last Thursday night, the Kosciusko School District voted to approve a district-wide move to virtual learning for two weeks beginning Monday, Aug. 23, and continuing through Friday, Sept. 3. Face-to-face instruction is set to resume on Tuesday, Sept. 7, when schools reopen after the Labor Day weekend.
KSD’s approval to shut down followed a decision by the Mississippi Department of Education allowing districts to pursue hybrid learning schedules through Oct. 31. The hybrid model serves as a likely option for schools within the district moving forward, but final decisions on learning options will be made when the school board reconvenes on Thursday, Sept. 2.
Superintendent Billy Ellzey said he has talked with the schools’ principals since the special meeting and administrators will meet with Ellzey and begin forming plans this week.
Ellzey explained that the district shutdown was done more so in precaution than emergency.
“We've had cases pop up, but we are trying to do everything we can to be precautionary. Our first mission is always to educate children, but we want to do that in the safest possible environment,” said Ellzey.
Rather than waiting to see if COVID-19 cases escalate as the school year progresses, Ellzey said the board wants to stay on top of the situation and prevent as much of the spread as possible.
“We're trying to hopefully cut it off before it does go [rampant] through the school district,” he said. “We’ll try to be ahead of the game as best we can and be preventative because we don't want to ask ourselves if we’ve done too little at some point. We’re going to make sure we do everything we can to prevent any problems within our children.”
While future decisions within the district are pending, Ellzey said learning models may look different at each school. Regardless, he assured that the district will have plans formulated and ready to go for the next board meeting, and that the district is going to do everything it can to meet the needs of students and the community while keeping everyone as safe as possible.
Ellzey did, however, speak to the benefits of a hybrid learning schedule, where some days would be spent in the classroom and others learning virtually. With fewer students attending each day, there would be an opportunity to spread them out more in the classroom — six feet apart where they would not be so close to one another. If someone did come into contact with COVID-19, it would significantly decrease the number of people that would need to quarantine.
“While virtual learning actually keeps [students] at home even more, with a hybrid option, you get both in-person and some virtual learning. It's more beneficial for students because they get both in-person learning and the virtual aspect as well to hopefully help prevent as many quarantines,” said Ellzey.
Before the school year began, ACSD and KSD added provisions to their reopening plans including cleaning and disinfecting classrooms, hallways, and buses as well as having touchless water fountains available for all students and staff. Ellzey said these measures have been successful but the biggest help, in his eyes, has been requiring masks.
He added that he thinks vaccination is the most effective way to prevent the spread, but with many students ineligible for vaccination thus far masks are the next best option.
Another preventative measure included having temperature scanners at each school to detect fevers, but Superintendent Ellzey said they have been on back-order. The district expected to have them by the beginning of the school year, but in their absence, handheld temperature scanners have been used instead. Temperature scanning kiosks will be delivered Wednesday, and the district’s tech department should be able to get them installed in one day, ready for use when in-person education potentially resumes.
The district faces important decisions as the school year progresses. Face-to-face learning is ideal, but quality education can still be given while protecting students, staff, and the community, administrators believe.
“At this time, being face-to-face is the best education we can provide for our children, but in doing so, we have to make sure we do it safely. So that's always going to be our goal — to get as many students face-to-face as possible and provide the very best education we can for them,” said Ellzey.
