To address concerns raised by employee groups, the link for those wishing to testify at the October 28, 2020, Board of Education public hearing on the 2020 Reopening Plan will now go live at 7 p.m. on Monday, October 26, 2020.
In order to ensure that there is representation from all key groups, one spot on the list of 100 speakers will be allocated to each of the following: the Chesapeake Regional Association of Student Councils; the Teacher’s Association of Anne Arundel County; the Association of Educational Leaders; the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees, Local 1693; the Secretaries and Assistants Association of Anne Arundel County; and the Anne Arundel County Council of PTAs. Outside of those group representatives, speakers will be allotted two minutes each.
Those interested in providing testimony to the Board must register to speak. The link to register will be made available on the front page of the AACPS website, www.aacps.org; on AACPS’ Facebook page, www.facebook.com/aacps; and on AACPS’ Twitter page, @AACountySchools, at 7 p.m. on Monday, October 26. Registration will close when the number of speakers reaches capacity or at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, October 28, whichever occurs first.
The reopening plan adopted by the Board calls for students in ECI and prekindergarten through second grade whose families have so chosen to begin hybrid classes on Monday, November 16, attending on either Monday/Tuesday or Thursday/Friday and working virtually on other days. All students and teachers will work virtually on Wednesdays to allow for a thorough cleaning of school buildings.
On Monday, November 30, students in grades 3 through 5 whose families have so chosen will return in a hybrid format, operating under the same guidelines as students in ECI and prekindergarten through second grade.
The onset of the hybrid model is contingent on the continued meeting of reopening health and safety metrics as established by the Anne Arundel County Department of Health. Students whose families have not chosen for them to be enrolled in hybrid learning will remain in a virtual learning environment.
AACPS will continue to work with the Department of Health and closely monitor the health data to make further decisions on middle school and high school students, with the goal of beginning to bring those students into buildings in a hybrid format beginning in mid-December.
Those who wish to speak at Wednesday’s hearing but are unable to do so because of space limitations or other reasons can provide testimony to the Board by sending email to BoardOffice@aacps.org or dropping off testimony at the Parham Building no later than noon on Wednesday, October 28, 2020.
Written testimony must be 250 words or less and must include the name and community of residence of the author as well as any pertinent group affiliation. Written testimony will be compiled and provided to Board members. Testimony that meets the above guidelines will also be posted online at www.aacps.org/boardtestimony.
The hearing will be broadcast live on AACPS-TV, which can be found on Channel 96 on Comcast and Broadstripe, and Channel 36 on Verizon. High definition broadcasts can be seen on Channel 996 on Comcast, Channel 496 on Broadstripe, and Channel 1961 on Verizon. It can also be viewed live on AACPS’ YouTube channel here.