Marblehead Schools To Return Students Up To Grade 6 By March 15

MARBLEHEAD, MA —Marblehead Public Schools will offer all students in kindergarten through sixth grade five days per week of in-classroom learning by March 15, while negotiating with the Marblehead Education Association to bring all students back up to five days, in a plan Superintendent of Schools John Buckey outlined to the school committee Tuesday night.

Buckey sought school committee approval prior to winter break to develop the plan to expand in-classroom learning after hearing from parents and students "who expressed what so many of us feel — the fatigue and despair associated with the seemingly unending nature of this (coronavirus) pandemic."

He said a leadership group of himself and school principals worked on the plan over the break that he presented to the school committee on Tuesday.

He said the plan enables students in kindergarten through sixth grade to return to in-person five days per week, while still adhering to 6-foot physical distancing guidelines negotiated with the MEA in the back-to-school agreement in August.

To return students in grades 7 through 12, the district would need to ease those protocols to 3 feet "because of space and scheduling constraints at the secondary level."

"We are exploring several options to present for negotiation with the Marblehead Education Association to expand in-person learning for older students at soon as possible," Buckey told Patch. "I want to see our students back in school and in our classrooms, with our teachers, and (Tuesday) night was a step in the right direction to what I know is our collective goal of doing just that."

Families of students who wish to remain in fully remote learning will have that option through the end of the 2020-21 school year.

The decision came within hours of state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education Commissioner Jeffrey Riley's stated intention to direct all elementary students back to five days in the classroom by April, with all students soon to follow.

Riley reiterated on Tuesday that the state's guidance is for at least 3 feet of distance in schools, though 6 feet is preferred. He said schools across the country and in other nations have shown that schools can be safely reopened with social distancing of "3 feet, or less."

"It is a tremendous step forward for our district," Buckey said of the March 15 expanded learning. "I am proud of our faculty, staff, families and students for their hard work and perseverance through these unprecedented times.

"We are all working for the same thing — getting students and teachers safely back in the classroom."

The move will also coincide with a school-wide coronavirus testing program to begin on March 1. The pool testing will collect groups of samples from students enrolled in the program and alert those in a particular "pool" where someone tests positive for the virus that they should be brought for individual testing.

"It's another tool in our toolbox for gaining greater insight into what is happening in our buildings and increasing confidence that our schools are safe," Buckey said.

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(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)

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