K-2 students in Fayette County schools set to return to in-person learning Feb. 16

Kindergarten through second grade students in Fayette County Public Schools are expected to return to in-person learning on Feb. 16, district officials said Tuesday.

District staff will review conditions on Feb. 9 to determine if the decision will hold.

Students in the district have mostly been learning from home since the COVID-19 pandemic struck in March 2020.

“In accordance with our graduated return model, students in grades K-2 whose families have chosen in-person learning will return to school on Tuesday, February 16, 2021. All other grade levels will continue with NTI: 2DL until their return date is determined,” Superintendent Marlene Helm said in a letter to families.

Under the most current plan that district officials have discussed, after kindergarten, first- and second-grade students return in person, grades 3 through 5, 6, 9 and 12 will be next, followed by grades 7, 8, 10 and 11. Preschool students will be the final group to go back to classrooms.

Efforts to curtail infection rates appear to be working, Helm said. The 7-day average of COVID-19 cases in Fayette County is 168 Tuesday, trending down from a high of 264 in January.

Greg Prince, a leader in the group Let Them Learn in Fayette County that is pushing for an in-person return, said in response to the announcement, “This is a good first step, however we expect more and quickly. Our children are suffering.”

“Although Fayette County remains in the purple range of the FCPS In-Person Learning Matrix, we are optimistic – as are our partners with the Lexington-Fayette County Health Department – that cases will continue to decrease,” Helm said.

Schools and offices are closed Monday, Feb. 15, 2021 for Presidents’ Day.

Remote learning will continue to be an option for families who choose that for their children. Families with questions about the return should contact their child’s school, she said.

Helm said several conditions factored into the decision to begin the phased return on Feb. 16:

▪ Community spread of COVID-19 is decreasing steadily.

▪ FCPS employees who have been vaccinated now have a level of immunity from the first dose.

▪ FCPS employees will be eligible to receive their second COVID-19 vaccination the week of Feb. 8-12, 2021 and Feb. 16-19, 2021.

▪ The number of students and staff testing positive for COVID-19 resulting in isolations is lower than the first half of January.

Helm said the FCPS In-Person Learning Matrix is not based on a single number.

“When making decisions about the appropriate mode of instruction, we also consider orders from the governor, student and staff absences, isolations and quarantines, operations and support considerations, community vs. institutional spread, community trends, and vaccine uptake,” she said.

This story was originally published February 2, 2021 at 5:43 PM.