Mid-Praire resuming pre-K classes Monday

The Mid-Prairie school district will resume its pre-kindergarten classes Monday.

Superintendent Mark Schneider announced Thursday that the program would resume because of an anticipated drop in the number of students and staff out for COVID-related reasons.

'The factors that went into the decision was the anticipated number of preschool students and personnel – teachers and paraprofessionals – that are expected back by Monday that was either ill or in quarantine,” Schneider said. 'We are keeping our fingers crossed that we will have no significant increase in new cases of illness and quarantine numbers for the remainder of the week.”

On Wednesday, the district reported 16 students and fewer than six staff absent due to positive COVID-19 tests, and 151 students and 17 staff absent due to quarantine.

On Nov. 4, the school board held an emergency meeting where they agreed to suspend the pre-K program through the end of this week due to COVID-related staff absences.

On that day alone, 18 teachers and paraprofessionals from West Elementary were absent, according to Schneider.

The move to suspend the pre-K classes was aimed at freeing staff to fill absences in other classes.

The district has six half-day pre-K classes, all housed at West Elementary and covered by three certified teachers and three paraprofessionals.

The pre-K program is a voluntary program for 3-and-4-year olds.