Salem Superintendent To Present 5-Day Classroom Plan March 15

SALEM, MA —Salem Superintendent of School Stephen Zrike said he plans to present a plan to the school committee at its March 15 meeting for the rest of the school year designed to bring as many students back to the classroom as possible five days per week.

Zrike admitted he was "surprised" when state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education Jeffrey Riley said on Tuesday that schools should plan for all students, beginning with elementary school students, back in the classroom five days a week by April.

Zrike said while that was the intention in Salem by the end of the school year, logistical considerations given that accelerated timeline must be worked out with the 6 feet of social distancing the district currently observes.

Salem Public Schools offer five days of in-classroom learning for kindergarten through second grade, and a hybrid program that includes two days of in-classroom learning per week for students in grades 3 through 12.

"Independent from (the DESE edict) the Salem Public Schools are working on a plan to return as many of our students back to school as soon as possible for a full-week experience for families that want the full-person," Zrike said.

Zrike said during his weekly Facebook Live session "we did not have an inkling this was coming from the commissioner" and that the district was "still trying to understand" the directive. Riley said on Tuesday that he will seek authority from the Board of Education to no longer allow remote hours to count toward minimum educational hours for those not enrolled in fully-remote learning —essentially eliminating involuntary remote and hybrid programs.

Fully remote learning will still be offered for those families that want it through the end of the 2020-21 school year.

Zrike said offering full-time, in-person learning for all grades will require the "need to look at the 6 feet (social) distances (guideline)" and "whether we should be looking at reducing the distancing requirements."

Riley reiterated on Tuesday that the state guideline is for at least 3 feet of distancing in schools, with 6 feet preferred. He said many schools across the country and in other nations have operated safely "at 3 feet, or less."

"We need to work with our staff and our school administrators to work out the logistics," Zrike said.

The superintendent added the good news that no students who took part in the voluntary coronavirus pool testing when they returned from winter break this week tested positive for the virus.

"It adds another layer of safety and peace of mind for in-person students and our staff," he said.

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(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)

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