But there's still plenty of debate among parents and … Text below from the Montgomery County Public Schools ‘ Community Update ‘ (December 16, 2020) in regards to the Montgomery County Board of Education’s vote to approve MCPS’ revised 2021 reopening plan. Please join us for a rally to demand a reopening plan on Wed; October 28th at MCPS main headquarters at 5:30pm. MCPS Updates Phased Plan for School Reopening Missoula County Public School has released additional information for their phased re-opening ahead of their upcoming Board of Trustees Meeting. On Dec. 25, the case rate was 37.3, an increase following a notable drop between Dec. 16 and Dec. 20. “We have set metrics, and, to me … I do not believe they should be modified and just throw caution to the wind,” O’Neill said. Absent an unexpected reversal of the trend, or a change to the metrics set to guide MCPS reopening, buildings will not reopen as planned next month. MCPS staff will return to the Board of Education on Nov. 6 and Nov. 10 to discuss and recommend a reopening plan for the second semester and any potential reopening before then that is aligned with health metrics. We support a safe and incremental approach to return. In a unanimous vote on Tuesday, school board members voted to keep the threshold they set for when students will be allowed to return to buildings for in-person classes: a less than 5% coronavirus test positivity rate and a maximum of 15 cases per 100,000 Montgomery County residents. • All parents/guardians will have the option to: 1. About 50.2% of those who responded chose to continue with virtual-only classes, while 49.8% chose to return to schools. For the nearly 100,000 students who will remain in a virtual-only model, Smith said during the press conference that MCPS will continue to update and improve online classes. We will continue to thoughtfully plan and collaborate with the Board of Education, MCPS staff and the community on our reopening efforts, while keeping safety at the forefront of all we do. “Now, we can be a little more aggressive knowing what we know now.”. The data show that white and Asian students were most commonly enrolled in the hybrid model. All rights reserved. On July 20, MCPS Superintendent Jack Smith discusses the district's reopening plan during a school board meeting on Tuesday. Of the people who responded to the survey and chose the partial in-person model: ● 172 were students who attend special program schools, ● 52 were students currently enrolled in home school. The proposed plans will also be shared with parents, students and staff. MCPS Superintendent Jack Smith said district officials did not feel comfortable loosening the thresholds used to guide reopening, but state and federal health leaders feel the accelerated return of students is doable when the existing metrics are met. The Google Translate Tool is displayed dynamically on Montgomery County web pages using a Google javascript function. Then, when the county hits a threshold of 5 to 10 cases per 100,000 (given the test positivity rate remains below 5%), the rest of the students who opted for in-person classes would be allowed to return to buildings. Following the release of the MCPS reopening plan, teachers have voiced safety and health concerns with returning to classrooms. 850 Hungerford Drive. The school board will meet on Jan. 12 to review data and determine if the Feb. 1 reopening is feasible. “The numbers are dramatically increasing in Montgomery County … We can’t turn on a dime and say tomorrow we’re going (back to schools).”. “I share the concern … that as we get into the next few weeks, it might actually get worse,” he added. The board chose to revise the phases by which students will return, bringing more back at once, but it delayed the earliest date that buildings could reopen from Jan. 12 to Feb. 1. Reopening Plan: Options for Parents/Guardians An essential consideration as MCPS develops reopening plans is to provide parents/guardians and students with Family Choice as there are varying degrees of comfortability and underlying health conditions amongst stakeholders regarding returning to in-person settings during the pandemic. By Wednesday, the rate had increased to 41.8. The school board could modify the metrics, but each school board member has recently voiced support for the current benchmarks, so revisions during next week’s meeting are unlikely. Under the new guidelines, no students will be in buildings for traditional classes if the case rate per 100,000 residents is higher than 15 or the test positivity rate is 5% or higher. “So (staff) are thinking about how we create that in a virtual world so it’s more balanced and suited to the individual student. Subject: MCPS Reopening Rally for a Plan . We want to thank all of our MCPS fathers for all you do for the children and youth in our community. Smith returned and said he would not be comfortable changing the metrics, but did suggest allowing more students to attend in-person classes more quickly when the metrics are met. Bring friends! MCPS is behind schools and learning hubs in our district, most of the systems in our state, and many across our nation and the world. 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