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Guilford County Schools Considers Modifying Reopening Plan

KERI BROWN/WFDD

Guilford County Schools is considering delaying the start of in-person classes for some younger students. 

Board members addressed the matter during a contentious hours-long meeting Tuesday night. The discussion focused on a measure that the board approved last month to begin a phased-in approach for in-person instruction.

Superintendent Sharon Contreras said as of now, some younger grades are scheduled to return next week, but she's meeting with county health officials to discuss possible modifications.

“We will discuss how we can slow down the gradual reentry plan that we already have to still try to move forward in some way and then we will contact the board and make an announcement about October 20," she says. 

Currently, the county's COVID-19 positivity rate is above the five percent reopening threshold the board agreed on – it's a little over six percent. 

But district leaders say it's not the only metric they are taking into consideration. 

"The metrics are meant to be guideposts,"says Nora Carr, chief of staff with GCS. “On the CDC guidance, it does not say that if you are in orange or even red, that you can't open. What is does say is that you should have other mitigation factors in place and that's why we have those, which are part of the metrics you [the board] adopted on social distancing, on requiring face coverings and those other measures.”

The district says it's received about 80 percent of parent preference forms for reopening. A majority want some form of in-person classes for their child.

Guilford County Schools began welcoming back some pre-K and kindergarten students back to classrooms on a voluntary basis over the past two weeks.

Ahead of the meeting, several people protested in front of the district's headquarters. The rally, organized by the Guilford County Association of Educators, was called to ask the district to halt reentry for now. Protesters said more needs to be done to keep students and staff members safe, including improving ventilation and addressing infrastructure needs in school buildings.

For the most up-to-date information on coronavirus in North Carolina, visit our Live Updates blog here. WFDD wants to hear your stories — connect with us and let us know what you're experiencing.

*Follow WFDD's Keri Brown on Twitter @kerib_news

 

 

Keri Brown is a multi-award winning reporter and host at 88.5 WFDD. She has been honored with two regional Edward R. Murrow awards for her stories about coal ash, and was named the 2015 radio reporter of the year by the Radio Television Digital News Association of the Carolinas (RTDNAC).Although she covers a variety of topics, her beats are environmental and education reporting.Keri comes to the Triad from West Virginia Public Broadcasting, where she served as the Chief Bureau Reporter for the Northern Panhandle. She produced stories for the state's Public Television and Radio programs and was honored by the West Virginia Associated Press Broadcasters Association for her feature and enterprise reporting.She also served as an adjunct instructor at Wheeling Jesuit University and Bethany College in West Virginia. She worked with the Center for Educational Technologies in Wheeling, WV, and other NASA centers across the country to develop several stories about the use of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) concepts in the classroom.Keri's journalism career began at WTRF-TV 7 in Wheeling. She worked in several roles at the station, including the head assignment editor. She also was a field producer and assignment manager at WPGH-TV Fox 53 in Pittsburgh.Keri is a graduate of Ohio University. When she's not in the studio or working on a story, she enjoys watching college football with her family, cooking, and traveling.Keri is always looking for another great story idea, so please share them with her. You can follow her on Twitter @kerib_news.

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