Brick Schools To Announce Restart Plans Next Week

BRICK, NJ — The Brick Township School District will release its plans for the restarting of classes inside the school buildings to parents next week, district officials said Thursday.

School districts around New Jersey were given until a month before the first day of school to give parents details of their plans for instruction for the 2020-2021 school year. Brick Superintendent Thomas Farrell announced preliminary plans July 17, and the district been working to finalize the details since then.

Farrell, who has been posting video addresses to students and staff almost weekly since the coronavirus pandemic shut down schools across the state on March 16, will be releasing a message about the plans on Friday, a message on the Brick Schools' website said.

"Additionally, the BTPS Safe Restart Plan for Families will be posted to the District website the week of August 3rd," the message said.

Parents who want to select fully remote learning for their children will need to make that decision by Aug. 7, officials said, and parents who had made a choice are able to update their selection until that date. The selection forms are available through the parent portal, officials said.

The preliminary plans announced July 17 include splitting students into two groups, based on the alphabet. Group A would attend in-person classes on Mondays and Wednesdays and Group B on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Students would have remote instruction on the days they are not in the classroom, and Fridays would be remote instruction for the entire district.

The length of the school day was still being determined at that point. Special needs students who have multiple needs would attend in person four days a week, under those preliminary plans.

Gov. Phil Murphy announced in late June that New Jersey schools could resume in-person instruction in September, provided the district creates a safety plan approved by its school board. But there are significant concerns from parents and from teachers and staff about the safety issues, as the infection rate has risen in recent days. The New Jersey Education Association issued a statement Tuesday urging a delay in the start of in-person classes because of the concerns.

The initial guidelines in the education department's "The Road Back" have seen changes, including the move by Murphy last week to allow school districts to go fully remote with instruction. Read more: NJ To Offer Remote-Learning Option For Schools Amid Coronavirus

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