West Morris Regional Preps School Reentry Plan For Fall

Although the plans are still not final, the West Morris Regional School District is working to figure out what school could look like this fall amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

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"In developing a plan for the upcoming school year, we are designing a system which we believe (1) prioritizes the health and safety of all of our members; (2) ensures a high level of instructional continuity; and (3) is durable enough to exist remotely, in full, or in several hybrid scenarios," Superintendent Michael Ben-David said in a letter to parents.

Ben-David noted that returning to school in full will be difficult as it is not possible to closely adhere to the current social distancing guidelines, even with masks and/or shields, with 1,200 students and 150 staff members in a confined indoor space.

"The plan we are developing will be one that prioritizes full in-person instruction for our self-contained populations, and provides a hybrid in-person/remote environment for everyone else," Ben-David said. "The hybrid format will in all likelihood place students into learning cohorts (9-12), reduce the in-school enrollment, by 2/3 or 1/2, and rotate cohorts between in-school and virtual environments on a four consecutive day cohort cycle."

Ben-David noted that the system the school begins with might not be the one they stay with.

"We are all eager and ready to ramp up if/when health and safety guidelines clearly allow for relaxed standards and increased enrollment," he said. "But our system will also survive if we must return to an entirely remote universe."

Gov. Phil Murphy has issued a list of rules and guidelines for reopening schools this fall amid the coronavirus outbreak. But he's also said that he could force students back to virtual learning if cases spike up again. Read more: Gov. Murphy Issues NJ School Reopening Rules Amid Coronavirus

New Jersey teachers, meanwhile, have developed a back-to-school plan with a set of possible ground rules amid the coronavirus. Read more: NJ Teachers Develop Possible Back-To-School Coronavirus Rules

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