YORK COUNTY, Va. (WAVY) — York County Public Schools confirms Yorktown Elementary School is shifting four of its classes to virtual learning because of staff and student absenteeism.
The school system is preparing for a potential shift to virtual learning for other schools as needed, due to the omicron surge.
Spokesperson Katherine Goff confirmed one class in Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd and 3rd grades are going virtual temporarily although she did not say for how long.
Superintendent Dr. Victor Shandor recently said he’s still confident of COVID mitigation strategies in schools, but district officials said in an update on Thursday that community transmission rates, which are at all-time highs, are affecting both staff and student attendance and it’s not sustainable.
As of Jan. 7, 2022, York’s COVID dashboard was reporting 266 active cases.
With that in mind, teachers this week prepared for a possible shift to virtual learning. Though Virginia law doesn’t allow the whole district to switch to virtual, York schools can do so with individuals schools or classrooms.
“To reiterate, the division has not made a decision to shift any classes or schools to virtual at this time, but every family should have a plan in place to support learning at home,” the statement on Thursday read. “We will continue to monitor our status daily and communicate any operating schedule changes to families if, and when, any changes become necessary.”
Other school districts in Hampton Roads are also preparing for a possible shift to virtual learning, including Chesapeake. Districts nationwide are also grappling with whether or not to switch back to virtual learning.
