Saucon Valley will be the first school district to put a toe in and test the water for returning kids to school.
They will have in-person instruction beginning on August 24th for half the grade levels. The other half will begin on the 25th, according to their website’s reopening plan.
On the 26th, all children whose parents haven’t opted for remote learning will be attending school.
Saucon Valley will begin classes a week before Wilson Area School District opens on August 31st, and a full two weeks before the Easton Area School District, which opted to delay their opening an additional week to September 8th.
Easton schools (grades 6-12), will be closed Wednesdays, involving a rotational hybrid plan of in-person and remote attendance for students not going fully online. Their elementary schools will go all 5 days on reduced hours.
Undoubtedly, local school districts in the entire Lehigh Valley and those in Monroe County will be keeping a close watch on Saucon Valley’s success, or failure, in opening.
If it turns out that children, or staff, test positive for Covid-19 in the first week, resulting in quarantines of others who may have had contact with them, it won’t bode well for those schools who haven’t yet opened.
They might well make a last minute decision to remain closed.
On the other hand, if Saucon Valley is successful, it would provide hope to other districts that they just might win the gamble to re-open during a pandemic.
Updated 8/20 to add EASD information.
Disclaimer: On January 4, 2016, the owner of WestEastonPA.com began serving on the West Easton Council following an election. Postings and all content found on this website are the opinions of Matthew A. Dees and may not necessarily represent the opinion of the governing body for The Borough of West Easton.
