By AMY RICKER
Great Bend Post
With students all over the nation attending school remotely at some point this year, USD 428 is exploring the potential for continuing a remote option beyond the 2020-2021 school year.
Director of Teaching and Learning Tricia Reiser said during Monday's USD 428 Board of Education meeting while the state process can be complicated, there is a definite need to make remote learning a continued option.
"What we are finding out is that there are parents that are still not going to feel comfortable sending their kids onsite next year," said Reiser. "We have kids that are having health issues. I think this would be beneficial and progressive."
Reiser says that there are 10 school districts in Kansas that the Virtual Learning Committee is reaching out to that began offering remote options for their students before the pandemic began.
"We would like to start looking into a virtual program for grades 6-12," said Reiser. "The beauty of creating a virtual program is that we can make it look exactly like what we want it to look like."
Reiser says with the input from the other school districts that already completed the process, USD 428 hopes they can take the best programs and form a remote school option that is beneficial to students and parents.
The application deadline to create a remote option is the second week of February.
Reiser says the Virtual Learning Committee will have a formalized presentation at next month's school board meeting. Reiser believes that a remote option for USD 428 students is a good idea and prefers it to stay small by only allowing in-district students to opt into the program.