Clinton County schools will be back in session for the 2020-2021 school year and with the guidelines from Governor Andy Beshear being issued last week, Dr. Tim Parson believes he can make it work.

“The same plan I’ve communicated fits and works with their guidance,” Parson said. “The only concern I had was when he said anything closer than six feet, wearing a mask was required … There’s a big difference in the words ‘recommendation’ and ‘requirement.’ ”

Parson said he wanted to make sure he could put 15-20 students in a classroom and have them six feet apart to keep students from having to wear a mask all day.

“I think for the public and the parents that’s a real big deal,” Parson said. “I went to the classrooms with a yard stick and started setting them up and measuring them. We feel confident, even in our smaller classrooms, we can put 20 kids in there.”

Parson said he won’t require any of the kids at the Early Childhood Center to wear a mask inside the school.

“They haven’t recommended masks for five and under at all, so those kids there won’t be wearing a mask basically at all,” Parson said. “There may be some six year olds in kindergarten, but if there are two six year olds in a classroom of five year olds, I don’t see much of a point in making them wear a mask.”

Sports is going to be somewhat different this fall and according to Parson it’s really still “up in the air.”

“It’s not going the way we hoped it would at this point,” Parson said.

Parson also said there is an alternate plan for those who choose not to attend school everyday.

A sort of virtual school will allow students to basically do the same work as those who choose to attend school.

Classes will be set up with cameras to record each day’s lesson and Parson said in most cases those who do the virtual classroom will have access to those lessons.

“We feel good about it,” Parson said. “As good as we can based on the circumstances.”

With only the two plans for putting school in session, Parson said if the virus got worse then they could reconsider, possibly going another route.

“If the virus forces us to close parts of the school, certain schools or the entire district, then we will retreat to the online version,” Parson said. “Unless we get in those circumstances, parents will have that choice of whether or not they want their kid to come to school or stay home.”

Sending kids to school, in parents minds, is a difficult decision that has to be made. While many parents have already made up their minds on which version of school they are going to allow their child to participate in, many others are still on the fence and worry about the safety of their child.

“I think, especially where we live in rural Kentucky, some people will even look at the health guidelines and think that it’s overkill,” Parson said. “But we will be following every letter that they have said in their guidance. We will be following that 100 percent. I feel like we will be in better shape than some of the other districts around us. I feel as good about it as I can. I feel safe even with your kids coming to school. With that being said, I can’t guarantee someone won’t get sick, because it can happen. We just have to be smart about it.”

Parson said kids at the middle school and high school won’t be changing classes, but rather the subjects will come to the student.

“They will be cohorts,” Parson said. “ECC, Albany Elementary, middle school and high school, kids will be in one group all day. As kids get older in high school, they may have to come to the trade school and some of those may be in two groups all day.”

Having this format, Parson said it makes it easier to do the contact tracing.

“If somebody gets sick it might be that we can just send a group home,” Parson said. “When a kid gets to be a junior and they get into the welding program, that’s their future, so we just need to make that happen.”

In order to keep kids in their classroom, Parson said teachers will either rotate or use technology and stream their lessons to different classrooms.

“I think at this point, all the lessons to some degree will be videoed because of the kids who are at home,” Parson said.

“It will be a difficult year for staff, but we can have school everyday and we can do it by following every bit of the guidance they have given us,” Parson said. “It’s still going to be hard, but it’s doable and there is still going to be a plan for a kid to come everyday if they choose to.”

Getting into school will also be somewhat different with temperature checks and so forth.

“It will be staggered somewhat,” Parson said. “Buses will have their own entrance at each school, so that the kids who are being dropped off or driving don’t come in the same entrance. Kids riding the bus will have their temperature taken when they get on the bus. When they get on they will have access to hand sanitizer and masks if they don’t have one. We will have an infrared thermometer and if their temperature is less than 100.4 they will load up and bring them to school.”

Parson said for those students who are dropped off or drive to school, a staff member will be at that location and check temperature, before the student gets out of the vehicle.

“That way, if it’s high, they can just turn around and head on back,” Parson said.

Parson said he doesn’t believe school times will have to change to accommodate the procedures needed to get students into the buildings.

“It may take us a little bit, but I believe we will get better at it,” Parson said. “I think it will work out because they will come to school and go straight to class. They can’t go to the common areas.”

Parson said he and some others have been brainstorming to try and break the day up as much as possible for the students to keep them from sitting in one spot all day long.

“Some teachers might take a class to the gym or maybe take a walk outside and they can do that as long as it’s just one class at a time in one location,” Parson said. “It could make for a long day if not. There will be a major effort to make the day as enjoyable as it can be.”

There is also going to be a strong point to listen to the kids according to Parson.

“We need to listen to them,” Parson said. “Adults and kids are different and we need to listen. I don’t think it’s even a bad idea to get a group of kids at each school to kind of advise us. What are some of the ways we can still play by the rules, but make your day better? It’s going to make for a long day if we don’t try to break it up and make it enjoyable for them. We are going to listen to them.”