Fairfield OKs plan to return to learn

FAIRFIELD – The Fairfield Community School District Board of Directors voted to adopt a return-to-learn plan at its monthly board meeting Monday, July 20.

The plan outlines the steps the district will take to ensure students return to class in a safe environment and details the district's priorities for the fall. The first day of class is scheduled for Monday, Aug. 24.

In a letter posted to the district's website at FairfieldsFuture.org, Superintendent Laurie Noll wrote that the next step for the district is to get the medical community's comments on the hybrid model of education, which refers to a combination of online and in-person learning, as well as feedback from district employees and parents.

Noll writes that the district's top priorities are:

' The safety of students, families and staff while keeping students in school.

' To safely keep face-to-face learning for as long as possible by following the guidelines within the return-to-learn plan.

' The social-emotion behavior health of students.

' The academic growth of students.

Noll urged members of the community to do whatever they can to mitigate the spread of the virus.

'The lower the number of cases within Jefferson County, the longer our students can be in school. We need your help to keep our students in school,” she wrote.

When parents register their children for fall classes, they will be asked their preference for either face-to-face or online instruction. Noll said the responses to this question will help the district plan for staffing at its buildings and for its online school.

According to the proclamation issued by Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, in-person instruction is the presumed method of instruction for the 2020-2021 school year. Her proclamation directs all state agencies and local governmental bodies to take all efforts to safely welcome back students to their classrooms.

Noll said that much of the district's return-to-learn plan was put in place before learning of the governor's proclamation, so some issues are still in flux.

'We have some areas we need more info on,” Noll said. 'We're trying to get feedback from medical personnel on what would be most appropriate in their opinion.”

Noll said the district's teachers and administrators have not had a typical summer. Even those who are not contracted to work over the summer have spent it developing this return-to-learn plan.

One element of the plan is that face shields will be provided for everyone – students, staff and faculty. The district is ordering a few different kinds. Some can be worn like a headband where the plastic shield hangs down from the head to cover the wearer's eyes, nose and mouth. Another variety can be affixed to a baseball cap. Noll said she can see several students who like wearing caps preferring that model over the headband style. She said that face shields will be preferable over cloth masks, particularly in warm weather.