The “new normal” of this pandemic is to constantly shift. The Beacon City School District has been prepping the community with how they intend to expand their reopening from 2 days/week in-person to 4 days/week in-person for each school, including a full Remote option for those who wish to stay at home, and 1 day (usually Wednesday) of Remote Learning to accommodate Remote Learners and special programming, according to the Reopening Presentation by Beacon’s Superintendent, Dr. Landahl on March 5, 2021.

Remote free breakfast/lunch service delivered by bus will remain available to students studying at home in the Remote plan as well. Elementary Schools and the Middle School opened for 4 days on April 6, 2021. The High School will open 4 days on April 19th, 2021.

Reaction to the reopening has been mixed, as Dr. Landahl acknowledged that change creates anxiety, stating in an email to parents on February 26, 2021: “I understand that this has been a difficult year for everyone and that the idea of potential change brings anxiety and lots of questions. I will do my best to be thorough in our explanations of plans next week and as transparent as possible.”

While many parents want their children in school for socialization and learning styles, a routine has been established. One district parent explained to ALBB: “We are in a routine now with 2 days, and upgrading now feels like the first day of school, since my child has not been with the other half of the class in person all year.”
UPDATE: We checked in with this parent at the end of the first 4 day back to school, and this parent was very happy to have their child in school, stating: “I haven’t been able to get anything done in ages! I’ve changed my tune!”

While the back-to-school jitters are in full swing in April, other parents expressed relief at starting the in-person schedule, shifting the weighted responsibility of learning and stimulation back to the teachers, instead of worrying all day that not enough stimulation was happening. Some parents stated that they may: “Take a nap. Take a shower. Take a meeting. Go to work. Take a walk. Clean my kids rooms. Buy my child’s teacher a really great Teacher Appreciation Gift Card this year, or any day, maybe once per week.”

For parents who are teachers, the shift back to the classroom may have made their work day easier with familiarity, as splitting for remote has involved a learning curve of new skills and tasks.

How The 4 Day In Person Will Work For Beacon’s 4 Elementary Schools

Start time remains at 9:30am. Parents who wish to change from in-person to Remote or vice versa can do so. Dr. Landahl stressed the thought process behind opening now, and addressed safety guidelines as well as mental health: “We have not seen spread of the virus in our in-person schooling the entire year. We have seen an increase of mental health concerns among our students. Families are struggling under the current model.”

At the end of this first day, 4 new cases of COVID-19 had been found in 4 students, but the students had been studying at home, so the schools could remain open. Generally, this has been the pattern to COVID-19 cases in the district. This may change with increased in-person days, but safety measures have been put into place.

All Remote kids will stay with their current teacher, and an additional full-time teacher has been hired at each of the 4 elementary schools to help with Remote learners. Some kids who are returning may be with a different teacher in order to accommodate class sizes. Said Dr. Landahl: “All-remote students will have a morning session with their teacher every day, and then 2-3 additional instructional sessions with either their homeroom teacher or the remote support teacher. Some instructional sessions will be direct [screen] instruction and some will be live-streamed. We are not expecting students to be in front of a screen all day.”

Safety Measures Being Taken

The Beacon City School District says it is taking direction from American Association of Pediatrics, Dutchess County Health, as well as medical experts quoted in the media. Areas of focus include air quality, ventilation, outdoor learning, voluntary surveillance (ie voluntary rapid testing available at school), social distancing and use of barriers.

Ventilation Measures

Dr. Landahl said that MERV-13 filters were installed in unit ventilators in September 2020 and are replaced on schedule. He also said that portable HEPA filters will be added to each elementary classroom and ultimately every classroom. The elementary school buildings are quite old, so open windows are encouraged, as well as universal masking and outdoor tents and spaces. Some parents are in favor of children to experience learning in an outdoor environment anyway, pandemic or not.

Plastic Barriers At Desks

Classrooms that cannot achieve social distancing will have plastic barriers installed between students where they are learning, according to Dr. Landahl’s presentation. Some tables will be replaced with desks, and class size will range from 11-17 students. Plans for each classroom are made once the districts knows how many children will be in classrooms.

Services For Special Education

Since the pandemic, students with special needs have been studying at school in person 4 days per week, and have small class sizes in their own rooms. Students with special needs who attend school remotely do sign in with their school-issued Chromebook at designated times to in order to meet with their teacher and to receive the work that is posted. Students with Disabilities who attend school Remote Only receive related services remotely, and are accommodated in-person to the extent possible, according to documentation posted at the Beacon City School District’s website.

English Language Learners (ELL)

According to the Beacon City School District’s Equity Report Card, the number of children in the Hispanic/Latino community who attend Beacon schools has been steadily growing, and is second largest to the white community.

According to Dr. Landahl: “The Beacon City School District is committed to comprehensive high-quality, and culturally responsive instruction for ENL students. We will provide the required instructional Units of Study to all ELL’s based on their most recently measured English Language Proficiency Level during in-person or virtual instruction. We will complete the ELL identification process within 30 school days of the start of the school year for all students that enrolled during the COVID-19 school closure period as well as all students that enroll during the summer of 2020 and during the first 20 days of the 2020 -2021 school year.

“After the 20-day flexibility period, identification of ELL’s will resume for all students within the required 10 school days of initial enrollment as required by Commissioner’s Regulation Part 154. Our ENL Teachers will be responsible for providing services to our ENL students. Schedules will be set and students that are enrolled in the Remote Learning schedule will receive their services on-line according to the required minutes of instruction.”