MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Shelby County Schools is working on a plan to figure out what reopening schools will look like in the fall.
President of the Shelby County School Board Miska Bibbs says a team is constantly looking at solutions.
“There is a team that is now working on what re-entry looks like and the first and foremost thing is safety,” Bibbs said.
She says the team is coming up with several contingency plans.
“One about the old normal, two if we have to do some blended time, meaning some students in, some students out, virtual learning or three, do we really just have to do everything virtual?” Bibbs said.
School board member Stephanie Love says social distancing in school is going to be a challenge.
“Most schools have anywhere from 300 to some of our schools have 1500 students in them. So, how do you practice social distancing in a school with a classroom of 20 or sometimes 30 kids?” Love said. “When we look at the cafeteria space, how do you practice social distancing in a cafeteria that normally feeds three or four classes at a time?”
Some parents do not think social distancing at school will be possible.
“I don’t think they can keep the kids far enough away from each other like that because its a whole lot of children in the school system,” Mainicia Benjamin, a SCS parent, said.
Bibbs also brought the challenges of getting kids to and from school.
“So does that mean we have to run several routes to a school building where maybe it was one bus? Should it be two or three buses?” Bibbs said.
School leaders are closely monitoring what’s going on health wise in Shelby County as they weigh what’s best.
“Administration is thinking about all of it and those are the pieces of it,” Bibbs said. “As a board, we have asked the superintendent and his administration to be able to deliver.”
Bibbs says these decisions are going to be made with the safety of teachers, staff and students being a priority.