Joliet Public Schools District 86 Releases Back to School Plan

The Joliet Public Schools District 86 Board of School Inspectors adopted a Hybrid and Blended Remote Learning Plan for the upcoming 2020-2021 school year after a presentation by District 86 Superintendent Dr. Theresa Rouse and administrators at last week’s school board meeting.

The 23-page plan is based on current guidelines from the Illinois School Board of Education (ISBE), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH), as well as guidance from the Will County Regional Office of Education and the Will County Health Department.

“The plan will be revised as we receive additional updates from ISBE, CDC, and IDPH officials,” said Joliet Public Schools District 86 Theresa Rouse, “We wanted to release the plan now to give our families and teachers as much time as possible to start planning. Over the next two weeks, we will call all families to finalize student registrations and receive feedback to help us as we prepare classes and schedules.”

The plan, posted on the Joliet Public Schools District 86 website, https://www.joliet86.org/assets/1/17/Remote_and_Blended_Remote_Learning_Plan_FINAL.pdf?24017, includes two options: a hybrid plan or a fully remote plan. The hybrid plan is both in-person instruction for students, as well as remote learning. All students, Kindergarten through eighth grade, will receive a Chromebook to use at home. Class sizes will be small to ensure appropriate social distancing to the best extent possible and masks will be required. In addition, thorough safety and cleaning measures will be enforced to keep everyone safe and healthy. In both plans, daily attendance will be taken and grades given.

“Ideally, we would have loved to have students back to school every day, but we do not have enough space in our buildings to keep everyone safe,” Dr. Rouse added, “I truly thank the individuals who spent numerous hours over the last several weeks developing these detailed plans that are both safe and viable for students, staff, and families.”

The first day of school for students is Monday, August 24, 2020. Joliet Public Schools District 86, the fourth largest elementary school district in Illinois, serves over 11,000 students from PreKindergarten through eighth grade at 21 schools in the city of Joliet.