When the fall semester begins in August, Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) will fully reopen with students returning to a normal schedule.

The announcement was made by LAUSD superintendent Austin Beutner Monday, saying students may return in the fall for five-day weeks and a full schedule, as COVID-19 infections in Los Angeles decrease and vaccinations increase.

“Looking down the path to recovery for the new school year, which starts this fall, all students will have the opportunity to participate in full-day, on-campus, in-person instruction,” Beutner said. “That means elementary school students will be on campus five days a week for a full day of in-person instruction with their teacher and classmates. Middle school and high school students will be on campus five days a week for a full schedule of instruction, changing classrooms for each period.”

At the moment, students who have returned to classes have done so on a staggered and shortened schedule.

More than half of students in the district opted to attend in-person instruction when the option became available in April, with classrooms still accommodating for the reduced number of students and social distancing regulations.

Beutner added that a distance learning system should still be in place, despite the full reopening, for those students who still do not feel safe to return in-person.

“While we are looking forward to welcoming all students back to schools in August, for students who are unable or choose not to participate at schools for in-person instruction, an online option must remain in place for the next school year,” Beutner said.

Remaining in the LAUSD will be weekly testing for COVID-19 and mask usage, despite the anticipated June 15 lifting of California’s mask mandate.

“We expect students and staff will continue to wear masks until more children have been vaccinated,” Beutner added. “But August is still three months away and we can’t predict exactly what standards health authorities are appropriate at that time.”

LAUSD expects that a “vast majority” of students, teachers and staff will be on campus in the fall.

 

 

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