Good afternoon,

Our School Board approved our School Reopening Plan last night. The Plan is an In-Person Hybrid Model that allows parents to choose whether they want their child to participate in in-person (Monday-Thursday) or fully remote learning. Currently, 57% of students have chosen the in-person model. On average, you should expect between 10-12 students in most classrooms, if this trend continues. That will provide plenty of space to provide for adequate social distancing in almost all of our classrooms. You can view our updated School Reopening Plan at https://www.bvps.org/apps/pages/bvps.reopening.plan?tota11y=true

One caveat that the Board approved last night is that we will review health metrics again on August 12. If there are no significant changes in a variety of health metrics at that time, we will continue with the plan as approved. If there are significant changes, we will revise our plan based on the health metric trends. As presented in the Board Meeting, those changes could include changing the date that we start school, increasing mitigations, or changing instructional models. I don't think that the direction we take on August 12th  will be a surprise because we will start to see trends in these health metrics in the coming days.

Please know that I have struggled with making this recommendation more than I have with any other professional decision I have ever made. Obviously, I understand the associated health risks associated with returning to school in-person. I also understand the risks associated with not returning to school in-person for many of our families. I also know that many of you are struggling with balancing all of the associated risks. I want you to know that we are prepared to work with you to ensure that you are safe, healthy, and comfortable. If you prefer a remote learning model, we will work with you to ensure your child's needs are met. I will note that our experience and research tell us that remote learning is inferior to in-person learning. Regardless, we will do our very best to work with you in a flexible manner.

If you have not completed the online survey about your learning preference, please do so ASAP - https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=8SXK_3r5SECEpTBbgleqoVC-8E8KXaxFr1XfhRxZXRFUNDdXTTUyTzVBUlkwT1FJMVJCRjYzQkZGVy4u. This will allow us to be adequately prepared to open school as safely as possible. In the coming days, you will hear from your child's school in regards to the next step in the return to school process. I appreciate your patience and understanding as we continue to ride the COVID-19 "roller coaster".