In spite of low numbers of coronavirus, the Juneau public school buildings will remain shuttered this fall, and students will start the year in their living rooms. The school year starts on Aug. 24, a week later than previously scheduled.
“This decision has been made with much stakeholder involvement and consideration of evolving guidance from the Department of Education and collaboration with CBJ Emergency Response leaders and local health officials. As we have communicated from the beginning of our SMART START 2020 discussions, the plan is designed to be a moving scale with decisions made dependent on current conditions,” the school district said.
On Wednesday, the district will release specifics at a public forum scheduled for 5 pm.
Juneau has had 92 confirmed cases since March of COVID-19, the coronavirus. There are no people on ventilators at Bartlett Memorial Hospital. The community has nine active cases of COVID-19.
“Our goal is to balance educational needs with health and safety for our staff, students, families and community. By beginning the year with the most stable plan possible, we increase our ability to focus on quality education and to maintain a consistent schedule that families can plan around. As health conditions evolve, plans may change,” the district wrote.
The district will reevaluate after Labor Day, by inviting small groups of students to return to the classroom for face-to-face learning. Those students will be the ones with the biggest challenges with distance learning.
The link to Wednesday’s informational meeting online at 5 pm is here.
Anchorage has also made the decision to keep children from school for the first part of the school year.
