Leechburg Area students to return to face-to-face instruction Oct. 5

Leechburg Area School District students will return to face-to-face instruction Oct. 5.

“I’m thrilled that the students are coming back,” Superintendent Tiffany Nix said.

Students have been learning online exclusively since school started Sept 2.

The original back-to-school plan approved in June offered students a choice of returning to school for full-time, in-person instruction.

The board initially voted Wednesday night on a plan to use a one-week hybrid model, which includes some in-class instruction and some online for returning to traditional face-to-face instruction Oct. 12. Nix said the transition week could be used so students could “understand and learn new procedures.”

That idea was defeated, with three school directors voting for it and six against. Only school Directors Melanie Knight, Neill Brady and Roxanne Thompson were in favor.

“We need to get the kids back in the classrooms,” said school Director Anthony Shea, who voted against the hybrid week.

But board member Karen Freilino was in favor of an extended hybrid period.

“I would like to do a whole month of hybrid,” Freilino said. “I think it’s a mistake to downplay the possibility of a covid-19 outbreak.”

Instead, Director Darius Lovelace asked the board to order a return to face-to-face instruction beginning Oct. 5.

That passed 6-3, with Freilino, Knight and Lisa Gregory voting no.

No visitors addressed the board Wednesday on the back-to-school issue.

“I had a lot of people tell me they wanted to go back as soon as possible,” said Brady, board president. “Armstrong County has been in the moderate classification for a long time.”

Brady said any district student can choose to remain with online instruction.

What students should expect

Students will be required to wear masks during the school day and while riding on the district buses.

Masks will be provided upon request.

Nix said all students in grades K-12 will continue to receive free breakfast and lunch through Dec. 31.

Mitigation practices on campus will include: one-way directional hallways; keeping students seated 3 to 6 feet apart; cafeteria seats will be 6 feet apart with alternative spaces utilized; outside visitors will be restricted; student desks will be sanitized after each class; there will be nightly “deep cleanings” by custodial staff; and air filters have been changed.

Parents and guardians with questions about the back-to-school plan are asked to call their school principal.

In other business

• The board hired Deana Turner as business manager/human resources director at an annual salary of $95,000. She’ll start Oct. 12.

• The district will donate a bookshelf valued at $400 from the school library to the Leechburg Public Library, which is moving out of the school for its own quarters.