Students at three Center Grove schools will return to eLearning next week, followed by a hybrid learning model starting Aug. 31.
Center Grove administrators announced the changes at Center Grove High School, Center Grove Middle School Central and Center Grove Middle School North in an email to parents Thursday, noting that elementary schools would not see any changes, aside from the cancellation of early dismissal Sept. 9.
“As we continue to monitor the number of COVID-19 positive cases in our schools, along with several other factors, we have made the decision to move Center Grove High School, Middle School Central and Middle School North to eLearning (online classes) for one week beginning Monday,” the email said. “Beginning Monday, Aug. 31, Center Grove High School, Middle School Central and Middle School North will begin a blended model of instruction for at least two weeks.”
Though five students at Center Grove High School tested positive for COVID-19, 143 students had to be quarantined after contact tracing efforts determined that was the number of students who had been within six feet of the positive students for more than 15 minutes, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guideline that is used to determine potential spread.
Another 31 high school students are isolated because they were either exposed to COVID-19 outside of school or showed symptoms of the virus, Superintendent Rich Arkanoff said Friday.
At Middle School Central, which as of Friday, did not have any COVID-19 diagnoses, 32 students are quarantined or isolated because they showed symptoms or were exposed to the virus outside of school. And Middle School North, which had one positive COVID-19 case, has 36 students quarantined or isolated for the same reasons, Arkanoff said.
The three schools will follow the hybrid model through at least Sept. 11, and a decision will be made about the weeks that follow by Sept. 4, according to the email.
Under the blended model, students will go to school some days and learn online from home some days. Those days will be determined by last name and family, as students will be assigned to Group A or Group B.
With the exception of Labor Day for both groups, which will be an off day, students in Group A will go to school on Mondays and Thursdays, learning virtually on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Students in Group B will go to school Tuesdays and Fridays, learning virtually on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. Center Grove schools will email parents with their children’s group assignment.
On Wednesdays, when all students are in the high school and the two middle schools are virtual, the school will make meals available to students who receive free or reduced-price meals by sending them home with enough food to last them the days they will not be in school, said Stacy Conrad, Center Grove’s spokesperson.
The number of students who had to quarantine was a leading factor in the decision to change the way students go to school at the secondary level, the email to parents said.
“We want to reduce the number of individuals impacted and the potential spread when a COVID-19 positive case is identified at Center Grove High School, Middle School Central or Middle School North. Our students and staff have done a tremendous job of wearing their masks during the school day,” the email said. “Without masks, we would likely see an increased spread and the entire classroom would likely be quarantined.”
“The best way to reduce the number of quarantined individuals is to reduce the number of students in our classrooms and other spaces.”
