Hillsboro R-3 School District officials plan to expand in-person classes from two to four days a week, with the younger students expected to begin the four-day, in-class instruction on Nov. 16 and the older students on Jan. 19.
The Hillsboro Board of Education voted 4-3 Oct. 15 to expand the in-class school week.
Board members Jon Schuessler, Angie Oshia, Rob Kruse and Erick Stephenson voted for the change, and Lisa Welker, Beth Petry and Renee Sucharski voted against it.
“I understand both sides,” Kruse said. “As a parent, it was a hard decision, but kids need to be in school and the data shows the kids need to be in school.”
Welker, the board president, said she voted against the motion because medical experts say they believe
COVID-19 cases could spike in the next few months.
“I guess I’m concerned about what the future may bring regarding the numbers of COVID cases,” she said.
Welker also said she wonders if the district will have enough substitute bus drivers and teachers to go to a four-day class schedule.
“It can be difficult to find substitutes for school bus drivers, when needed,” she said. “The same thing goes for subs for teachers.”
Superintendent Jon Isaacson said the plan to expand to four days is contingent on approval from the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.
Because of the COVID-19 pandemic and the need for social distancing, the district started this school year with a hybrid instructional program that has about 80 percent of the students attending in-person classes two days a week and learning online at home the other days. About half of those students attend classes at school on Mondays and Tuesdays, the other half go on Thursdays and Fridays.
The other 20 percent of the student population learn entirely online from home.
Isaacson said the plan to expand to four days of in-class instruction calls for:
■ Kindergarten through sixth-grade students enrolled in the hybrid program are expected to begin classes at school four days a week starting Nov. 16. In-person classes will be Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, with Wednesday a virtual learning day for all.
■ Kindergarten through 12th-grade students enrolled entirely in virtual learning would remain in all-virtual learning for the remainder of the first semester, which ends Jan. 14.
■ Seventh- through 12th-grade students enrolled in the hybrid program are scheduled to return to school four days a week beginning the first day of the second semester, which is Jan. 19.
■ All students would have the opportunity to enroll in November for all-virtual learning for the full second semester.
Isaacson said students who attend in-person classes are required to wear masks wherever social distancing is not possible.
“The decision to make adjustments to the re-entry plan has been weighed heavily,” Isaacson said. “Our goal is always to make decisions that are in the best interest of our students and staff. In today’s environment, balancing the academic and social well-being of students with safety for all is a challenge we have never faced before. Each decision and change most definitely brings on a level of uncertainty. Our goal is to provide a safe and effective educational experience for our school community.”