Half-Day Instruction For Parsippany Schools Until October

PARSIPPANY, NJ—Schools Superintendent Barbara Sargent outlined changes to the Parsippany's return-to-school plan on Thursday evening, announcing that in-person instruction will be half days at least until Oct. 2.

"This half-day schedule eliminates student lunch and related concerns," said Sargent, "it allows our teachers to engage with remote learners in the afternoon, and to prepare instruction."

The district's Return to School Plan, presented earlier this summer, would have provided full-day classes when students attended in person.

The school start times will not change, but the high schools will be dismissed at 11:45 a.m., the middle schools at 12:10 p.m., and the elementary schools at 1:00 p.m. Sargent said preschool and special education will follow a different schedule set by their principal. In another exception, Sargent clarified that the half-day change does not apply to another group of students.

"Students choosing the fully remote option will be engaged every day, each week," she said, "and are not subject to the half-day schedule."

Despite the rollback of in-school time, the superintendent said the district is in compliance with all state guidelines for reopening, and noted that more than half of the township's students requested in-person instruction.

"Our students academic, social, and emotional needs cannot be optimally met through remote learning," Sargent said. "We can and should reopen to the greatest extent possible."