School Reopening Plan: Harford County Public Schools Shares Draft

HARFORD COUNTY, MD — Officials with Harford County Public Schools have released a draft plan for how school reopening may look. Transportation, fall athletics and child care are some topics addressed in a frequently asked questions page that accompanies the plan, which officials shared Thursday afternoon.

A second phase of reopening Harford County Public Schools buildings is slated to start Monday, according to the school system, meaning buildings will be open to staff and visitors in a limited capacity.

Two events will provide more information about the proposal for schools reopening, according to Harford County Public Schools. At Monday's school board meeting, the superintendent plans to discuss the draft plan, and a parent academy is slated for Wednesday on the topic as well. Work groups are still underway to address specifics such as child care for Harford County Public Schools employees and sanitization.

Here are some of the takeaways from the draft reopening plan:

• Classroom learning may be held both in-person and virtually, on an alternating schedule for in-person instruction. There will be an all-virtual option. Parents will be asked to notify the school system in July if they want their student(s) to participate in all-virtual school. Grading will be the same for in-person and virtual instruction.
• Every teacher and student from kindergarten through grade 12 will have a device. Kids from kindergarten through 9th grade will get Chromebooks, while those in grades 9 to 12 will get Microsoft laptops.
• For students without internet access who are part of targeted populations such as special needs, school officials will make an effort to try to get them to school in person every day.
• As long as Maryland is in stage two of its recovery plan, face coverings will be required in all Harford County Public Schools buildings. (There may be separate guidance for students with special needs pertaining to face coverings and classroom scheduling.)

Read the draft plan for reopening Harford County Public Schools.

The frequently asked questions section is on the HCPS Recovery page (scroll down). Here are some details:

• Students may participate in outdoor summer athletic conditioning starting July 13. Fall sports will start on Aug. 12. The fall sports season may look different, and details are still being worked out.
• Plans for technology distribution, busing, class schedules, athletics, meals and other special concerns will be communicated in August. School bus seating in stage two will be limited to one student per seat.
• Central Office opened to visitors as of June 17. People should not enter if they have symptoms of the coronavirus. Additional school buildings are open by appointment starting July 13 as part of the office recovery plan. To check on the status of a school office, select the school on the HCPS website for more information. People may request to use outside facilities at schools.

Discussion About Reopening

Superintendent Sean Bulson will discuss the proposed reopening plan at Monday's school board meeting, which will be livestreamed at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, July 13.

A town hall on the draft HCPS Recovery Plan for parents will be conducted from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, July 15. It will include a question-and-answer session. Want to submit a question ahead of time? Send it to HCPSTogether@hcps.org. If the question does not get answered during the live session, school officials say an answer will be posted on the Harford County Public Schools Recovery page.

The Maryland State Department of Education is requiring all school districts to post their finalized reopening plans on their respective websites by Aug. 14.