On Wednesday, February 17, Prince George’s County Schools CEO Monica Goldson announced that PG County schools will begin to offer hybrid learning to students who choose to return will begin doing so in April. According to Goldson families will be sent a survey to select to either continue virtual learning for the remainder of the school year or begin hybrid instruction two days a week in April. The due date for that survey will be February 28.
The hybrid model will contain two days of in-person learning and three days of virtual learning. Students will be divided into two groups during this time. Goldson said “I believe that our plan to implement hybrid learning, where students have two days of in-person learning and three days remotely, will help to meet the needs of many of our students, and will ensure that we continue to prioritize health, safety, equity and excellence” in a video statement released by the CEO.
Staff will begin returning in March to prepare. In a separate interview Prince George’s County Educators’ Association President Theresa Mitchell Dudley said she is thankful the school district is waiting until April to reopen. According to Dudley, “It has been hard for people to get vaccines, and people have been scrambling. So, this gives us time to get the vaccines. It gives us the time to look at the reopening plans in the building to make sure that people are safe.”
School will not look like it did in the past. According to the reopening guide on pgcps.org “As students enter the classroom, the teacher will inform the student which desk to go to, desks
will be numbered. Desks will be forward-facing and staged to maintain social distancing at least
6 feet apart. [Teacher desks] will be staged to allow staff to visually monitor in-person students along with engaging distance learners. The use of lockers and/or cubbies and coat racks will be prohibited. All students must wear face coverings while inside PGCPS facilities and while being
transported by PGCPS Department of Transportation.” If a student refuses to wear a mask they will be assigned to distance learning at home. You can read the full reopening guide at https://www.pgcps.org/reopen-pgcps.