D126 Sets Date To Implement Hybrid Learning Model

ALSIP, IL — Alsip-Hazelgreen-Oak Lawn Dist. 126 will kick off its hybrid learning model on Jan. 21. Students in the elementary school district have been learning remotely since the beginning of the 2020-2021 school year due to the pandemic.

Dist. 126, which draws grade K-8 students from Alsip, Oak Lawn and Worth, has remained in remote learning when coronavirus positivity spiked in the three communities during the fall. The Illinois Department of Public Health has set a metric of under 8 percent in coronavirus positivity rates to be acceptable.

The intention has always been to return to in-person instruction ever since Gov. J.B. Pritzker ordered all public and private schools to shut down last March at the beginning of the pandemic.
In a district wide survey this past summer, 55 percent of parents indicated a desire to see their children return to in-class instruction. The school board voted to begin the 2020-2021 school year in a full remote-learning format, and postpone the option for hybrid learning temporarily due to the uptick in COVID-19 cases.

Students will remain within their originally assigned hybrid groups, attending school some days for in-class instruction and learning remotely at home on other days. Parents also have the option of keeping their children in full remote learning. Specific instructions for the return to in-class instruction will be sent by the building principals of Hazelgreen, Lane and Soney Creek elementary schools, and Prairie Junior High School.