Gloucester Township K-8 School Board To Discuss Reopening Monday

GLOUCESTER TOWNSHIP, NJ — Gloucester Township K-8 Superintendent of Schools John Bilodeau will give an overview of the school district’s reopening plan during Monday night’s Board of Education meeting.

The meeting begins at 6 p.m., and the public can participate virtually by using this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88268694017?pwd=MlRrVUJPUEQrUU50dER0Uml5Q09vQT09. The Meeting ID is 882 6869 4017, and the password is BW4Dm3. Members of the public will be muted and not allowed to activate webcams.

Members of the public can submit agenda questions via email to mailtogtboardmeeting@gloucestertownshipschools.org. Emailed questions will be read aloud and then answered in the order in which they were received once public comment portion begins.

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The school district previously said it has developed two plans. The "All-in Plan" places a priority of having students in school. The "Space First Plan" would call for smaller numbers of students in schools and place priority on social distancing. Read more here: Gloucester Township Schools Are Considering These Reopening Plans

Boards of education were given flexibility that "recognizes and respects" the differences between districts by the state. This includes the option to rearrange schedules and implement a hybrid of in-person and remote learning.

Gov. Phil Murphy has cautioned that districts should be ready in case they need to move back to an entirely remote learning environment. Read more here: Gov. Murphy Issues NJ School Reopening Rules Amid Coronavirus

"This is about as complex a step as we will take or as any American state will take, and we want to get it right," Murphy said. "We want to do it responsibly. We want to respect public health, but we also want to do everything we can to try to recapture that magic of some semblance of in-person education that no state does like New Jersey."

New Jersey teachers, meanwhile, have developed what may be considered a strict set of possible ground rules for getting kids back to school in the fall. Read more: NJ Teachers Develop Possible Back-To-School Coronavirus Rules

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