After monitoring the local winds of the COVID-19 pandemic, the East Tallahatchie School District has shifted gears and will start the 2020-21 school year with online-only classes.
The change in direction, announced early Thursday afternoon by ETSD Superintendent Dr. Darron Edwards, was decided earlier in the day via a teleconference involving Edwards and school board members.
"We had been watching the statistics of the cases, and this morning we pivoted," Edwards said in a phone call to The Sun-Sentinel.
Less than one week ago, on Thursday night, July 9, the ETSD school board had adopted a hybrid schedule for the fall. One of three operational options set forward by a Mississippi Department of Education workgroup, the hybrid model features a combination of face-to-face instruction in the traditional school setting, as well as virtual learning online.
Edwards said the recent spike in the number of local people testing positive for the novel coronavirus had increased concerns about the risks involved in bringing students back to school at this time. Fall classes are scheduled to begin Aug. 6.
On July 9, the Mississippi Department of Education reported 166 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Tallahatchie County. This morning, MSDH's daily report listed 247 positive cases here. There have been four deaths.
MSDH statistics recently noted that during the one-week period from July 6 to July 12, Tallahatchie County had the fourth-highest incidence of positive cases per capita among the state's 82 counties.
Edwards noted that some ETSD employees have been battling infection, but said he could not cite a number.
The superintendent said dual Zoom meetings are scheduled next week for each of the three schools in the district so that parents can learn more about the virtual plans.
Parents will have their choice of two Zoom meeting times — 10:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. — each day, on the following schedule:
» Charleston Elementary School: Tuesday, July 21
» Charleston Middle School: Wednesday, July 22
» Charleston High School: Thursday, July 23
Edwards said the access credentials for Zoom meetings can be obtained by contacting the respective school(s). A time slot should be reserved as soon as possible, because each session can accommodate no more than 100 people.
"We're working daily to keep our parents informed and engaged in the process," Edwards added.
