Newark City Schools to open for fall online

NEWARK — Newark City Schools will begin the year in fully online classes, with opportunity for in-person instruction for individuals and small groups, it was announced Wednesday through an email from new Superintendent David Lewis to the district’s parents.

The plan was developed after listening to all groups, Lewis said. The Newark City Schools Board of Education met on Tuesday evening to discuss and approve the plan. “Everyone has had the opportunity to communicate and have their voices heard,” Lewis told the Advocate on Wednesday. “The safety of our students and staff is our number one concern.”

Aug. 20 will be the first day of school, pushed back from the original Aug. 18, allowing staff more time to prepare. “Teachers have been provided with professional development opportunities this summer to improve the online learning experience,” Lewis said. “There will be more teacher-student interaction through these online platforms.”

“The hybrid plan was not a feasible plan at this time,” Lewis explained. “It would take a great deal of planning and preparation, for our teachers to have to be face-to-face and virtual. The time frame we have, it would not be in our best interest to split into Group A and Group B. It was not a very efficient plan, and we want it to be simplified as much as possible.”

But, Lewis said, this is more of a blended learning model. In a departure from the spring, staff will teach online from the buildings and not from home.

“Their materials are already there, and this gives us a chance to have some normalcy,” Lewis said. “This will also help if people come in intermittently.”

In the email, Lewis said there will also be opportunities for individual and small group instruction provided in-person.

Small group and individual services will be provided in a number of ways. Any students meeting in-person will wear masks and will practice social distancing. The district is also working to provide busing for students who are receiving those services as needed.

“This will be different from in the spring,” Lewis said. “Our students are hurting and need us. Being able to provide small group services and provide social/emotional support is very important. We have a system where they can come in and meet with their teachers individually, for extra help or tutoring. We’ll keep a normal schedule. This will be for all students. At-risk, special needs, average students and gifted learners. Whoever needs to come in.”

Lewis called this “a more responsible plan” than going just solely virtual. “In coming up with this plan, we struggled with two things,” he said. “This has been such a hardship on parents, and we wanted to find a balance. We also wanted to keep all employees working and not have to lay them off, and we think we can accomplish that with this model. We will still provide district transportation throughout the community, either by providing meals daily or bringing in students in-person.”

He stressed that the goal remains to get students back into in-person learning as soon as possible, when it is safe. “We will not put a date on this plan,” Lewis said. “We will watch the numbers and continue to rely on guidance from the health department, and will evaluate it weekly. There may be a time we go into a hybrid plan as we transition back into full-time.”

Newark is following guidelines from OHSAA and the state regarding extracurricular activities and athletics.

“Athletics is such a social/emotional outlet for students, and we don’t feel comfortable eliminating athletics as a district,” Lewis said. “We’re looking for every opportunity to bring normalcy to our students.”