The USD 470 Board of Education voted Monday night in a special meeting to bring students back to a hybrid learning model starting Feb. 1 and full school attendance in-person four days a week beginning Feb. 15.
Ark City schools have been fully remote since the Thanksgiving break when COVID-19 cases and deaths locally and nationally spiked in November.
Last week, the school board voted to return elementary students — PK-5 — back to a hybrid model starting Tuesday, but days later scheduled a special meeting for Monday night to revisit protocol for middle school and high school students.
Tuesday, elementary students will return within the A/B Hybrid Learning Model (students are split into two groups and attend school in-person two days per week).
On Feb. 1, elementary school students will begin attending school in-person four days per week, with Wednesdays to remain a remote learning day.
Also on Feb. 1, grades 6-12 will return within the A/B Hybrid Learning Model and attend school in-person two days per week.
On Feb. 15, middle school and high school students will begin attending school in-person four days per week, with Wednesdays to remain a remote learning day.
The special meeting was done via Zoom with Cowley County Public Health Officer Thomas Langer on hand to answer board member’s quesitons.
Langer said several data points for the virus spread in Cowley County have trended downward and that shifting to more in-person schooling is more applicable with current conditions than before.
When asked about the vaccine rollout at the local level, Langer said supplies are far more limited than expected, but said the health department has seen more shipments begin to arrive recently. Langer said he expects vaccines will increase in availability soon.
Cowley County added 61 more cases of COVID-19 since Friday, according to Monday’s latest report from the Kansas Department of Health and Environment.
Since March, Cowley County has confirmed 3,153 cases of the virus.
Friday, the City-Cowley County Health Department reported deaths in the county since the pandemic began now number 57.
Statewide, 3,525 people have died due to COVID-19 since March.
