Clovis schools to end distance learning in the fall. Here’s how classrooms will work

The Clovis Unified School District plans to return to a pre-pandemic schedule for the upcoming 2021-2022 school year, Superintendent Eimear O’Farrell announced on Thursday evening.

Parents and students who still want an online option will have to disenroll from their school and enroll in Clovis Online School, as the district will not offer hybrid learning or online learning from a student’s current school.

The schedule will include all students, including special education, school officials said.

Even with a normalized schedule, hygiene measures may still be enforced in the fall.

“We have planned for the conditions as they are today, with masks, social distancing, and increased cleaning,” said Corrine Folmer, associate superintendent of school leadership.

But “with increased vaccinations and improved conditions in our county and state, we will continue to follow closely changing requirements and plan to adjust accordingly.”

Clovis Unified will serve breakfast and lunch to students in the new school year at no cost, school officials said. Buses will run, and co-curricular programs such as athletics, academic teams, choir, and band will also be available.

The district will also offer more student support services to help students reconnect with being back in school.

“I do think it is very important to acknowledge that the last year and a half has caused stress and trauma to our students as they’ve navigated this COVID experience and change in their educational world,” she said.

Parents should receive an email on Friday, officials said, that will include links with information on how to secure a spot and declare a commitment to sending their child or children back to school in the fall. Officials are asking parents to fill out the information by May 7.

If schools have another shutdown, “that will be easier for us,” Folmer said. The district will be able to pivot to online without teacher changes. If an individual child needs to quarantine, they will enter into an independent study for that time.

To help with learning loss, teachers are doing assessments at the end of the year to “diagnose and prescribe where students are,” said Robyn Castillo, associate superintendent of instructional services.

Teachers will again assess students in the fall and “make sure we are meeting students where they are and progressing them forward to where they need to be,” she said.

Fresno Unified Superintendent Bob Nelson said in early April that the district also plans to move to a five-day-a-week in-person schedule in the fall.

This story was originally published April 30, 2021 at 11:30 AM.