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DPS to remain on Plan C through January
Durham Public Schools will continue operating on fully remote learning—“Plan C”—through January 15 for traditional and year-round schools, and December 23 for specialty high schools, following a recommendation by Superintendent Pascal Mubenga at the Sept. 24 meeting of the DPS Board of Education. DPS is working to put in place improvements to students’ and teachers’ schedules to make remote learning easier while awaiting the opportunity to return to in-person instruction.
“We are going to make Plan C better,” said Superintendent Pascal Mubenga. “Our community and teachers are not all of one mind, but right now most families and teachers still have deep concerns about COVID-19. We are continuing to work with our health department and medical experts to identify the best, safest time to re-open for in-person instruction. Our students need in-person instruction, but parents and teachers need to be confident that our community is ready. I will always consider their health and safety first.”
CLICK HERE TO WATCH OUR SEPTEMBER 24, 2020 BOARD OF EDUCATION MEETING
Ignite Online Academy registration begins Sept. 28
DPS will continue to refine its plans for offering families the choice of continuing online instruction through Ignite Online Academy or returning to socially distant in-person instruction (“Plan B”). In order to have an accurate count of how many families would remain in 100-percent online instruction, DPS will open up registration for Ignite Online Academy on Monday, Sept. 28.
“If we want Plan B to be a possibility in January, we need to know how many families would want their students to continue to learn from home,” said Dr. Mubenga. “The more families that commit to Ignite, the more space we will have in our school buildings for students who need in-person instruction.”
The school board asked the school system to survey families and staff about their experience with remote learning and their desire to continue it or return to some kind of in-person instruction. 23.6 percent of DPS families, 64 percent of teachers and staff, and 34.7 percent of students responded to surveys about perceptions about remote learning and planning for the next school year.
Making virtual learning better
In response to the survey and other feedback, and to support families with students from multiple schools, DPS will have a unified lunchtime for all schools throughout the district, from 11:45 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. DPS is also ensuring that Wellness Wednesdays will be handled consistently from school to school, and working with school leaders to reduce the amount of daily screen time for elementary students. New schedules will be implemented at the beginning of the second quarter.
DPS to reduce the number of learning centers
In response to lower-than-expected demand for the DPS Learning Centers, the board voted to consolidate the six sites to three or four depending on its continuing work with partners operating the independent HOPE Learning Centers in Durham. DPS will communicate a timeline with families as soon as possible.
