MCPS Updates Phased Plan for School Reopening

Missoula County Public School has released additional information for their phased re-opening ahead of their upcoming Board of Trustees Meeting.

On July 28th, the Board of Trustees will meet, and one of the big topics of discussion will be safely reopening schools in the fall. Over the last couple weeks, many of us have seen the “Return to School Overview-Draft” but the new document “MCPS Phasing Model for Reopening” gives some additional details about what parents may be able to expect, and how MCPS will be determining future steps. The Board of Trustees will not be voting on this at the upcoming meeting, just discussing for now.

One of the new things families can look forward to is the option for “MCPS Online Academy.” This will be the completely virtual remote learning option. According to the page it will be “available for any student in Phase 1 or Phase 2.” These virtual classrooms will be facilitated by an MCPS instructor who is also working remotely. If MCPS has moved to Phase 3, this 100% virtual option may still be available to some students with an individualized education plan.

In both phase 1 and 2, we can expect an adjusted school day schedule. Kindergarten through 5th grade will be at school from 8:25am to 2:00pm, Middle School from 8:00am to 1:30pm, and Highschool would be from 10:00am to 3:30pm. We would remain on this shortened schedule until we move to phase 3.

Starting on July 29 MCPS will begin using data from Missoula City-County Health Department, to monitor cases and will continue into the school year. Depending on if cases are increasing, decreasing, or are static, this will determine which “phase” MCPS will operate in. As with everything coronavirus related, it is subject to change.

See the complete agenda for the upcoming meeting, and for links to public comment or join the meeting, visit the website here.