PGCPS Delays Hybrid Classes; Classes Stay Online As Cases Spike

PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, MD — With coronavirus cases surging, Prince George's County Public Schools announced Tuesday that classes will continue online until further notice. The school system was previously considering offering hybrid schooling to interested students. That offer is now off the table.

Since announcing the virtual fall semester, PGCPS CEO Monica Goldson has said she would update the county on her spring plans on Dec. 1. She held true to that promise, sending the community a letter Tuesday afternoon.

"The health and safety of your families is as important to me as the health and safety of my own," Goldson wrote. "Taking this extra time to make decisions regarding resuming in-person learning is for our collective well-being."

If deemed safe, Goldson would have asked families whether their students wanted to start hybrid schooling or continue virtually.

Students who chose the hybrid model would have attended in-person classes twice per week and continued with online instruction for the remaining three days. The hybrid model would have started on Feb. 1, which is the first day of the third marking period. Students who preferred virtual learning would have kept their online schedules.

For now, PGCPS is making the decision for them: Classes will stay online. The school system will not offer fully in-person classes until at least the 2021-2022 school year, Goldson said in July.

PGCPS released a survey in October, gauging family's thoughts on a potential hybrid option. Two-thirds of parents said they were still uncomfortable with in-person instruction. That sentiment paired with rising coronavirus metrics led Goldson to delay offering the hybrid model at all.

"Like you, I am hopeful that we will be able to welcome our students and teachers back to in-person learning once it is safe," Goldson wrote Tuesday. "Together, we can — and we will — get through this unprecedented time. We are one community, one PGCPS."

To catch up on the latest coronavirus trends in Prince George's County, click here.

RELATED:

• Prince George's Breaks Case Rate Record, Passes 40K Infections
• 'Zoom Overload': PGCPS Tries To Find New Ways To Engage Students
• Most PGCPS Families Not Yet Ready For Return to Schools: Survey
• PGCPS Will 'Prioritize Our Students' Needs,' Keep Classes Online
• Classes Will Be Online Until 2021, Prince George's Schools Say
• PGCPS Will Build 6 New Schools With $900M Of Private Money

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