Pierce County’s largest school district will have full-time in-person learning this fall
Pierce County’s largest public school district will offer full-time in-person learning five days per week for all students starting this fall.
Tacoma Public Schools, serving nearly 30,000 students, will join other districts in the county in expanding in-person learning.
Tacoma students are participating in a hybrid schedule of learning, where students only attend school in person a couple days a week and use remote learning the rest of the week, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The district is examining what it would look like to have 3 feet of social distancing in classrooms, which is the recommendation of current state guidance.
“We have an incredibly strong team of educators in Tacoma Public Schools,” deputy superintendent Josh Garcia said in an announcement on Thursday. “They’re looking ahead to the fall, anticipating student needs and creating plans to provide our students a high-quality education next school year.”
The Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction told The News Tribune last week there is an expectation for all schools to reopen in the fall.
“I don’t think it’s in written guidance, but we meet with school district superintendents regularly and Superintendent (Chris) Reykdal has made clear that we expect all schools to reopen fully for in-person instruction in the fall,” director of communications Katy Payne said.
For families who do not want their students to attend school in person, the district will continue Tacoma Online for the 2021-22 school year. Interested families can join the waiting list online.
The district pointed out that state law does not currently require a COVID-19 vaccination for school entry, but all individuals 16 and older are now eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine.
This story was originally published May 6, 2021 at 8:46 AM.
