COLUMBIA — Richland County’s two school districts are preparing for five-day classroom returns next month, as administrators say decreasing COVID-19 transmission rates in schools and new public health advisories are allowing for the transition.
Starting March 8, Richland School District One elementary students will move to a five-day schedule, with middle school pupils following suit on March 15 and ninth through twelfth graders to follow on March 29, Superintendent Craig Witherspoon announced.
Meanwhile, Richland Two is anticipating a return to normal operations within the next two weeks, though district officials did not provide a clearer timeline than that. Currently, the district is on a hybrid model that sends students to schools two days a week.
Combined, the districts educate 52,000 students in South Carolina’s capital county. Lexington-Richland 5 moved to a five-day, face-to-face model on Feb. 1.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Feb. 12 released new guidelines calling for a phased approach in re-opening K-12 schools nationwide, defining four color-coded categories:
• Schools in areas with low transmission rates fall into the blue zone; those in areas with moderate transmission rates are in the yellow zone. Both categories qualify for in-person learning, according to the CDC.
• Schools fall into the orange zone if they are part of communities with significant transmission rates and are encouraged to operate on a hybrid or reduced attendance basis.
• The red category means area transmission rates are high. Elementary schools that conduct regular testing of students and staff, including those who are asymptomatic, can operate hybrid or reduced-attendance classrooms. Middle and high schools should operate virtually. Schools that do not conduct regular testing should stick with remote learning only.
• “Low transmission” means nine or less new cases per 100,000 are recorded over the previous seven days, and less than 5 percent test positive, according to CDC Director Rochelle Walensky. She noted that just 5 percent of the nation’s counties are experiencing low transmission levels while more than 90 percent have high levels.
As of Feb. 25, Richland One had 24 active COVID-19 cases among students and staff, and since the start of the school year have recorded 503 positive cases.
Both Richland County districts will continue their yearlong virtual learning options.
“On a related note, Richland One is working closely with Prisma Health on the vaccination process with a goal of supporting district staff vaccinations as quickly as possible when the state moves to Phase 1B. We look forward to collaborating with Prisma Health to provide this opportunity for all educators and staff,” Witherspoon said in a statement.
Lexington One high school students remain on a hybrid model that has them behind desks four days a week, while five-day learning resumed across Lexington Two on Jan. 19.
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Richland school districts preparing for five-day returns - Charleston Post Courier
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