WADESBORO — The Anson County School Board announced the postponement of a re-entry plan for in-person schooling through Feb. 26 during the board’s monthly meeting on Jan. 25.
Students were set to return to in-person learning two weeks after winter break, but the district pushed back that plan until at least the end of January due to the alarming rise of COVID-19 cases in the county.
The board is again pushing back the start date of Plan B as cases continuously climb. Virtual learning will continue through Feb. 26 with a potential start date of March 1.
Dr. George Truman put in motion the postponement of in-person learning, saying it would allow more time for vaccines to be administered to faculty and staff.
“It would those vaccinations an opportunity to give our staff some immunity to COVID-19,” Truman said. “This would benefit our teachers and reduce the possibility that students would become the new transmission vehicle, similar to what we saw at Thanksgiving and Christmas.”
Superintendent Howard McLean was instructed by the school board to come back to the monthly meeting in February with a Plan B to bring back students safely.
McLean’s original recommended Plan B began in the fall with students K-5. These students were split up between three different cohorts. Each cohort would rotate weekly between coming into the classroom while the other two cohorts continued learning virtually.
The board is leaving it up to McLean to either continue with this plan or for him to create a new Plan B. At the next board meeting, he will present his plan and outline how March 1 will look as both elementary and secondary students are set to be back in the classroom.
Secondary students have not returned to the classroom all year. Only K-5 students experienced the new normal while in school, which only lasted a few weeks as the schools quickly went back to 100% virtual learning.
Depending on vaccinations, the board could meet sooner to alter the current plan. But for now, students will not return to in-person schooling until March 1.