Back-to-school plans come together

Noxon Superintendent Jon Martin said that school will re-open and the administration will follow the school calendar approved by the board. However, it will look a little different in the halls at Noxon School when students return on Aug. 26 for the first day of school.

During a four-hour meeting last week, the school board decided that kids will be back in the classrooms at the end of the month, but parents will have an option to request remote learning for their child due to health concerns. The board will decide exactly how the remote learning will be implemented at its August meeting.

Martin said that new to the school this year is a registered nurse who will be on staff one day a week. The school has signed a contract with Cabinet Peaks Medical Center for the nurse.

Noxon School will also implement additional cleaning in its buildings. Martin said that a custodian has been hired whose sole job will be sanitizing areas throughout the day. This will include cleaning recess equipment and common areas between groups of students. Until state and local directives move to Phase 3 re-opening, all students and staff will be screened each day for symptoms of the coronavirus.

If the state or local government moves back to a Phase 1 coronavirus guideline, the school will move to a blended model of on-site and remote learning. According to the school plan, “in the event there is a confirmed case, either staff or student, there could be a short-term school closure for contact tracing and additional disinfecting of the facility.”

Noxon School will provide masks for its staff and students who request it, but face coverings will not be required. “We recommend masks and are following the CDC and governor’s office, and they will provide masks if anyone would like one.” Martin was part of a statewide task force tasked with developing guidelines for schools as the new year approaches. He said the task force did dive into some of the options for remote learning, but primarily focused on researching federal funding and different waivers for schools.

Martin said the Noxon plan was written using resources from the state Office of Public Instruction, Department of Public Health and Human Services and the governor’s office. “We’ve been working closely with all of those agencies, including the local health department,” he added.

“We’re excited to be going back to school,” Martin said. “It will be good to have the kids back. Otherwise we miss them.” He added that the school is projecting enrollment will be higher this year.