Junior high and high school students in Hamilton Southeastern (HSE) Schools will be on an all-virtual class schedule beginning Monday, Nov. 16 at least through Dec. 18, when Christmas Break begins the next day. Grades K-4 (including pre-school) will remain in-person, while grades 5 and 6 will stay on a hybrid schedule with 50 percent of the time in the classroom.
The vote by the school board was unanimous. It is a reaction to an increase in COVID-19 positive cases in the Fishers area and Hamilton County.
Administrators told the board that staffing has been a challenge. All classrooms have been staffed, but it has been difficult with teachers giving up preparation periods and others, such as principals, deans and counselors, filling in.
Superintendent Allen Bourff said only 4.1 percent of the positive cases within the school district came from school activities. According to Bourff, there have been 245 positive cases in the school system and 2,263 instances of close contacts requiring quarantine.
The Fishers Health Department is scheduled to vote on a series of recommendations in response to the increase in COVID-19 cases locally. They include doing away with school extra-curricular activities, including athletics. It would also call for mask wearing the entire school day, with no breaks. The board vote is expected at a meeting set for 4 p.m. on Friday.