The Alcorn School District is making plans to reopen schools on August 5, 2020. This will be the students’ first day of school for the 2020-2021 school year. Teachers are set to return on July 30th. With approximately 80% of parents surveyed stating that they are comfortable with students returning to school on August 5th and with the majority choosing a traditional schedule, the District is planning for students to return to school with special considerations to health and safety in place. Administrators are meeting and using parent and staff survey responses and state-level guidance as well as continuously monitoring CDC guidelines to plan alternate schedules that will enable the district to seamlessly transition to other learning plans such as a hybrid or virtual learning schedule if needed or if another local or state-wide school closure takes place. To aid in being prepared for learning and teaching to take place regardless of the setting or schedule, the District plans to purchase MacBooks for students in grades ninth through twelfth, iPads for students in grades fifth through eighth, and MacBooks for all teachers in the district. These devices combined with the use of a learning management system will enhance learning in a traditional setting as well as enable teaching and learning to take place if distance learning is required.
Alcorn School District is looking forward to the upcoming school year and partnering with parents, teachers, and the community to make this school year a successful one. The district is aware that there may be gaps in student learning due to the closure last school year and is making plans to meet any deficits as soon as students return. To assist in this, parents are encouraged to continue to use resources made available through the district’s website along with encouraging summer reading through resources such as Strong Readers, Strong Leaders, which is provided online by the Mississippi Department of Education. Once school reopens, the District is asking for parents to comply with guidelines by monitoring their child’s health and keeping students at home if signs or symptoms of COVID-19 are present. The District is working to create policies and procedures to implement in the event of student or staff member diagnosis or exposure and will be communicating that with parents. Planning for additional nursing and sanitization support is also taking place. Our goal is to keep our students, your children, safe and healthy while offering them every opportunity to learn and be successful. As a community, we can accomplish this task.