SWANSEA, S.C. — Lexington School District Four students and staff started their first day of school with in-person and virtual classes during the pandemic.
It's been a day teachers, parents and kids have waited on for a long time, the first day of school.
School as we know it changed once the coronavirus pandemic started back in March. After last school year ended in a different way people imagined, school districts began coming up with plans for the 2020-2021 year.
Lexington School District Four decided to offer both a hybrid and virtual model for students. In the hybrid model, it includes in-person class on an AA-BB schedule. Due to which format students enrolled in, the district says they're shouldn't be more than a third of students inside the building each day there's in-person instruction.
The district said in a press release: “Our decision to reopen Monday was based on the needs and situations of our students, families and staff,” Lexington Four Superintendent Dr. Robert Maddox shares. “There is definitely not a “one size fits all” solution, and other districts have been going through similar processes for their schools and communities. We need to meet the guidelines and recommendations set forth by the South Carolina Department of Education, DHEC, and the CDC, and we also want to ensure that what we have in place is best for our community. We did this through staff, parent and student surveys, consultations with federal and state agencies, and months of preparation and planning to provide students the opportunity to learn in a safe and healthy environment.”
Parents dropped off their children Monday morning at Sandhills Primary Elementary School in Swansea for the first day of class.
April Busbee's youngest child is participating in the hybrid schedule.
"We are excited more than we're nervous, but we're more unsure of just how the schedule is going to go, how are they going to be able to move around the classroom," said Busbee.
Part of the reason Busbee chose the in-person option for this school year was because her oldest and youngest children can focus better in a classroom setting.
"For me, I used to teach so I can sit down with them but they just do better without me teaching them and kind of one-on-one with a teacher and just making sure that they're on the right track," explained Busbee.
Some parents felt more comfortable sending their children to school because of social distancing guidelines put in place by the district such as desks being spaced out at least six feet apart and students and staff being required to wear masks.
Busbee has spent time talking to her children to make sure they understand the importance of following all the guidelines.
"The most important is washing your hands, not touching your face and not being up close on people," said Busbee. "I've been reminding them and letting them know, think about everything you're touching, don't touch your face and things like that."
"I feel very safe sending her to school. I'm not scared about that and they weren't either so I don't think emotionally they had any issues with coming back," explained Busbee.
Other parents say they didn't really want to send their children to school yet but they have to because they need to get back to work so they can provide for their family.
"My hands are tied right now. I have no option. I just feel like for some single parents, this is about the only option you have is to send your kids to school," said one parent. "I do not really support sending the kids to school at this time. Like they say, it's still not safe to go to movie theaters or to the mall in crowded areas. Why do we still need to send kids back to school still?"
Not every family who showed up to school Monday morning were participating in the hybrid model. Families came to school to pick up electronic equipment so kids can learn from home.
Some parents decided to take the virtual option for their child because they wanted to see the number of coronavirus cases go down first.
"If one person got sick and loses life, that's terrible. Georgia opened too quick and now they've got so many people who's got sick. They had to close it down," said Gene Laporte. "That's why we tried to stay on the safe side to see how things progress and then we can let the kids go."
As the school year gets underway, people like Debbie Iriel hope children and families will remain healthy this school year.
"The guidelines, I feel like they're trying to be safe. They're making it safe for the children and for themselves. As long as everybody does the right thing, I believe that everything is going to be alright," said Iriel. "Everybody stay safe and well and be prepared. It'll get easier as the days go by. It'll get easier. I pray that this thing gets back to normal and that's what I'm hoping for everybody."
The district said in a press release, "There are six Wi-Fi access points throughout the district for students without internet access. In addition, 300 hot-spot connections and 70 fiber connections have been requested from the State of South Carolina for households that meet eligibility guidelines. Take-home breakfast and lunch meals will be provided to hybrid students for their virtual learning days, and students enrolled full-time in the virtual program will have meals available for pick up at Frances Mack Intermediate School and Swansea High School Freshman Academy."
The school district says they'll continue to monitor COVID-19.