TSD 401 Board reviews draft plan to reopen schools

TETON COUNTY, Idaho (KIFI/KIDK) - The Teton School District 401 Board of Trustees reviewed the first draft of a plan created by the district’s administrative team Monday.

The draft plan provides three different possible school situations as the community continues to navigate the COVID-19 pandemic.

The local level of community transmission will be the determining factor regarding which education level is deemed safe for public school students.

The draft plan condenses and localizes the 45-page “Back to School Framework” released last Thursday by the Idaho State Department of Education.

The levels are color-coded for easier understanding.

Basics of the three levels, and their corresponding transmission levels, as defined by Eastern Idaho Public Health, are:

• Green: no or minimal community transmission: a traditional model, with modifications for social distancing and other health precautions
• Yellow: minimal or moderate community transmission: a hybrid model, which combines both in-person and remote learning -- students would attend school in person two days a week, alternating days so fewer would be in the buildings at any given time. Teachers would monitor online efforts on other days
• Red: substantial community transmission: an all home-based learning model, if conditions worsen and warrant an extended closure of school

Parents can also opt in for an all-remote model, color-coded blue, which allows students to stay enrolled at TSD 401 and work with local teachers. This will be an expansion of the existing Teton Online School, an alternative previously offered only at Teton Middle School.

The three-page TSD draft plan is available for review online HERE.

“This is truly a draft,” Superintendent Monte Woolstenhulme told the board. More details will be available in early August, he said.

Over the next month, administrators will research specific questions raised by trustees at Monday’s meeting. They will also seek to further address staff and parental concerns brought forward in district-wide surveys earlier this summer. Teachers will be involved, too, although nearly every TSD employee is currently off-contract for summer break.

An updated plan is expected to be provided to the TSD 401 trustees at its August 10 regular board meeting.

The state Framework document can be accessed on the Department of Education website and is linked to the TSD plan HERE.