Dear MCPSS Parents, Guardians, and Employees,

Mobile County Public Schools has been monitoring the number of COVID-19 cases in Mobile County in order to determine when it would be safe for our students, employees, and our families to return for face-to-face instruction. The numbers have decreased significantly since the decision was made this summer to offer remote-only learning. The COVID-19 confirmed cases are currently to the point where I now feel comfortable with a plan to transition students back into the classrooms.

Please note that this is our tentative plan as of today, and it is subject to change if we see a drastic increase in COVID-19 cases, or if other challenges develop. Also, please know that you have an option as a parent to determine whether you would like to send your children back to school or if you would rather continue with the remote learning instruction that we currently have in place.

We have put measures in place for our face-to-face learning such as social distancing, wearing of masks, adjustments to our arrival and dismissal routines, and our breakfast/lunch program procedures to protect our students and employees. We will be vigilant in our efforts, knowing that we will still have cases of COVID-19. We will continue to enact quarantines as recommended by the CDC and the Mobile County Health Department as warranted.

Conclusively, is remote learning the best for some students? Absolutely. However, over the past week, it has been determined that it is not best for ALL students. It is working beautifully for some; others are showing little progress; and some parents have said their children are not capable of learning remotely. Therefore, based on numbers in our area and factual student data, again, I have decided that we will begin phasing students back into the classrooms as follows:

September 28 (revised)  Special-education students (03 and 04 students ONLY – SELF-CONTAINED)
October 5 (revised) Grades Pre-K, K, 1, 6, and 9 may return to school.
October 12 (revised) Grades 2, 3, 4, 7, and 11 may return to school.
October 19 (revised) Grades 5, 8, 10, and 12 may return to school.

I am proud of what our teachers and students have been able to accomplish through remote learning thus far, and I am pleased to be able to continue to offer it as an option to all our families. I have no doubt that we did the right thing in delaying our original August 10th start date, when the COVID-19 numbers in Mobile County were among the highest in the state and we were all deemed as being “high-risk.” It gives some relief in knowing that we are now considered “low-risk" at the current time.

Thank you for your patience and flexibility as we work through our transition plan for the rest of this quarter, and the 2020-21 school year. Together, as #TeamMCPSS, “We’ve got this.”

Chresal D. Threadgill
Superintendent