WEST SPRINGFIELD – Families were given an update regarding West Springfield Public School’s plan for reopening from Superintendent Tim Connor.

Connor took to Facebook to provide families with the plan the district is working on to ensure that students will get an education in the fall despite the coronavirus pandemic. Connor said the point of the video was “to give you a quick update on where we are with the reopening organization and some other key things we’re working on as a district.”

He said while the district was working on a plan, they were “still waiting on some guidance regarding bussing, which is, in many ways, the lynchpin of what we can do for a schedule.”

Connor said the district is looking at three different scenarios for reopening. “One, to see whether we can bring back students in fall. Another option is the hybrid, and of course, always preparing for a full remote again, should we need to go in that direction,” he said. Connor said while he wanted students to be back to in-person learning in the fall, the main goal of each and every option was safety.

“Our goal is to try to get kids back, that is our goal. We know that the remote learning is not for everybody, and honestly I don’t believe it’s for most,” Connor said. “So we’re working hard to figure out ways that we can get kids back safely and I think that’s the key word, is safely.” He said the district has been receiving guidance from the Department of Public Health and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention “on a daily basis.” This guidance, Connor said, will be followed by the district.

Connor explained that he believed students being back in school would be beneficial, “not only for students, but also for the kids and just getting back into routines, that’s when learning happens best, when it’s face to face with teachers.”

He said the district was working “on a couple different scenarios that would provide parents with some options, all depending on the comfort level for you and your family to return.” He added, however, that he wouldn’t speak on those options during the video as nothing had been finalized yet.

Connor then gave a brief summary about the district’s participation in “the statewide parametric review and training.” He said, “What this is, is basically a tool that the state has asked every district to use to take a look at how many kids we could have return under the guidance of a three-foot and a six-foot barrier.”

He said the district was expected to have the data back from the training by July 16, and they planned to use the data “to guide what we can do.” Connor stated that every school and class would be different based on their needs, but “we’re going to do our very best.”

He said, “It’s not going to be easy, without a doubt, it’s not going to be easy and it’s not going to be optimal. But again, with your patience, with proper planning, we’re going to put the very best plan together for West Side to get learning together again.”

Connor ended with a small update on the district’s anticipated need for substitute teachers and the district’s continuation of work on their equity program. He said that “we have a sense that we’ll be needing even more subs,” and anyone interested should contact the human resources department.

He added that for their equity program, the district had been working with Tamika La Salle, who serves as an associate professor of educational psychology at the University of Connecticut. Connor said the work being done on the program deals with “what we can do in West Springfield to be sure that we are constantly thinking about biases, unconscious biases and being sure that we’re being as inclusive as possible in our community.”

He added that the district began working with La Salle in January and will continue working with the district for the next three years. “The conversation with Tamika started back in January so we’re happy to have her on board, she’ll be with us for three years and she’ll be working on things such as hiring practices, our policies and procedures, our curriculum, getting input from families and kids,” he said.

He said they were “really looking forward” to continuing their work with La Salle in an effort to honor the diversity within West Springfield. “We have great diversity as you know in WS and we honor that and we want to make sure that that is constantly at the top of the list that we’re thinking about,” he said.