COLUMBIA, S.C. — Richland School District will go back to virtual learning after the holiday break, and is stopping after school activities right away, due to the surge in coronavirus cases.
The district said Monday night it will temporarily shift to eLearning for all students from Jan. 4–15, 2021. In-person instruction will resume on January 19, 2021.
They add that employees have the option to work remotely Jan. 4–15. Front Offices will be open in order to provide assistance to our parents and students.
The district also daid they've cancelled after school activities beginning Tuesday, December 15. After school childcare programs will remain open Tuesday (Dec. 15) – Thursday (Dec. 17) at the middle school level and Tuesday (Dec. 15) – Friday (Dec. 18) at the elementary school level.
"While we believe we can continue in-person instruction this week, we are nearing a critical point in terms of having enough employees available to safely operate our schools, especially in terms of the workload placed on our school nurses (due to contact tracing) as well as bus driver availability," the district said.
The district said the number of employees placed on quarantine after Thanksgiving break left them concerned that the weeks after winter break could put an even bigger straing on their staff. Richland Two said the medical professionals who assisted the district with developing the eLearning triggers confirmed that district operations could be impacted by the number of employees in isolation or quarantine.
In an effort to prevent an unexpected shutdown after Winter Break, some employees will need to report to work to complete essential tasks that can't be handled remotely. Please note supervisors will notify employees if they are needed to report to their work locations. All employees will return to working on-site on Tuesday, January 19.