The Jersey City Board of Education approved an all remote learning plan through September at an over five-hour special meeting hosted on Zoom last night.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
“The plan as it stands today is to have remote learning … starting on September 10th. It starts with remote learning and there’s going to be reevaluation in September. The superintendent has already documented that as part of the plan,” said Trustee Mussab Ali.
Ali continued that he was unsure if the board had a consensus on when the teachers would return to the classroom, prompting a response from Board Counsel Michael Gross.
“We are going to be working and learning remotely for the month of September as of right now. That’s what you’re gonna be approving as part of his [Superintendent Frank Walker’s] plan as part of phase I during the month of September.”
Both Gross and Walker later explained that data would guide the school district as to if and when they would enter phase I, as well as what exactly that would entail.
For high school students, classes will be in session between 8:30 a.m. and 1 p.m., while elementary school session will take place from 8:30 a.m. until 2:45 p.m.
The measure passed unanimously (9-0) and mirrors what the Bayonne Public Schools did last month.
Public and private schools have been closed statewide since March 18th, following an executive order by Gov. Phil Murphy (D).
The governor announced at the end of June that all school districts must provide parents with a remote learning option and that any additional plans would be up to each individual BOE.
On Monday, he revealed that the state Department of Education had decided to mandate that all students be required to wear face masks while in class “unless it would inhibit the student’s health.”
At Wednesday night’s West New York Board of Education meeting, the local teachers union came out against the in-person learning aspect of their reopening place.
