WEST SPRINGFIELD – West Springfield Public Schools will officially reopen classrooms on Feb. 8.

During its Jan. 26 meeting, the West Springfield School Committee voted unanimously for the district’s return to the cohort hybrid model of learning. Within this model, students in Cohort A will engage in in-person learning on Mondays and Tuesdays, while students in Cohort B will be inside the classrooms on Thursdays and Fridays. Pupils who want to continue full remote learning will be a part of Cohort C.

“There’s no perfect decision here,” said Superintendent Timothy Connor. “For every 50 percent that want kids back in school, there’s another 50 percent that don’t. None of this is easy, but in my heart of hearts, I think we need to get eyes on kids.”

According to Connor, preschool through second graders, as well as sixth and ninth graders will return to school on Feb. 8, depending on their cohort. The other cohort of students in those grades will return to classrooms on Feb. 11.

Students of all grades in West Springfield will return to school on Feb. 22 and  25, also depending on their respective cohort. February vacation for all students will be during the week of Feb. 15.

Connor’s original plan was to have seniors return on that Feb. 8 date, but scheduling conflicts would have made certain aspects of reopening much more difficult.

“We recognize that senior classes are much different than freshmen classes,” said Connor. “A lot of the freshmen classes are very pure with freshmen. As you move up through high school, we start to have many different grade levels in our classes. So scheduling would be a nightmare.”

The sixth and ninth graders have also not been orientated in their respective buildings yet, according to Connor. With them being the first groups of students to return, Connor hopes that they can be more comfortable with their surroundings before all students in the district return to hybrid.

“This is going to be a different orientation,” said Connor. “We’re really going to have to control our traffic patterns [and] our lunches.”

School Committee member William Garvey, who has regularly been concerned about returning to in-person learning, supported this new plan for reopening. According to Garvey, the mental health problems students have experienced while remote far outweighs any con of returning to in-person learning. Mayor William Reichelt noted how many teachers reported an increase in depression from students after the Christmas break.

“These decisions are hard, but what’s beginning to be harder is some of the relationships, some of the division, whether that’s in West Springfield or in Massachusetts,” said Garvey. “We need to do this together.”

Reichelt’s original plan was to reopen schools on Feb. 1, but he said he did not want to “bungle” the strategy, or force students to return too quickly. Busing schedules also need to be organized, as well.

According to Reichelt, the school’s safety team will meet each Friday to discuss COVID-19 numbers. Even with schools reopening, Reichelt said that there is a possibility that certain wings, classrooms, or other programs within a school could be closed based on specific data. An entire school could close as well if there is a rise in cases. The goal is to target certain aspects of the district that may cause a spread, rather than fully return to remote learning.

“It’s important to continue to follow the COVID guidelines,” said Reichelt. “We can do this together as a community. We’re doing what we believe is in the best interest of the students.”

With February vacation approaching for students, Reichelt encourages people to be honest if they are traveling. If they do plan to travel, Reichelt wants students to get tested before returning to school. As of right now, West Springfield continues to hold COVID-19 testing for West Springfield residents every Sunday at the West Springfield High School from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

“The virus hasn’t gone away,” said Connor. “We will close where we need to close … we’ll continue to stay on top of the data.”

With the exception of a couple weeks in the fall, West Springfield schools have been remote since March 13, 2020.