Columbia Public Schools’ fall plans complicated by COVID-19 uncertainties

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Columbia Public Schools continues to work through many different scenarios to figure out what the 2020-2021 school year will look like.

CPS spokeswoman Michelle Baumstark said Tuesday that working through those scenarios is complicated by the uncertainty of when COVID-19 orders limiting crowd sizes and building occupancy will be eased.

Baumstark said what occurs in the fall will be tied to the Columbia/Boone County Health Department's phased approach to reopening.

According to the Columbia/Boone County reopening "road map" document, schools can reopen in the second phase.

During this phase, the county will maintain social distancing requirements, as well as increase the focus on personal protection through hand hygiene, respiratory etiquette and self-isolation for people with COVID-19 symptoms.

Baumstark said with a lot of unknowns planning is difficult, but CPS hopes to hold in-person classes in the fall.

"It may have to be a hybrid," Baumstark said. "There's a lot of factors to consider when you really start digging into the planning. It's like you think, 'Well what do we how do we handle this situation? How do we accommodate this group of students?'"

CPS will continue to monitor the health department's orders because at any point in time a spike in cases might lead health officials to pull back on the progression stages.

"At any point in time that could be walked back," Baumstark said. "So we're hopeful that everyone will continue to follow what is being prescribed to us as the parameters and guidelines that we need to be following so that we can make it to that higher-level benchmark."

In the meantime, CPS is allowing teachers into school buildings to retrieve their belongings first because some teachers are retiring, need to move rooms or are not returning.

The next step will be allowing CPS seniors to drop off their devices at each high school and the Career Center on May 21 and May 22.

Baumstark said principals are working on plans to allows CPS seniors to possibly receive yearbooks during the device collection as well.

CPS is working on a schedule for secondary-level students to retrieve their belongings.

CPS secondary buildings will be divided off in sections during the retrieval and the district will only allow a certain amount of people to go in the building at one time.

Baumstark said the working through elementary is easier because the students' belongings are in one classroom.

CPS plans to bag those items up and have a drive-thru pick up process.

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