Pittsburgh Public Schools Supt. Dr. Anthony Hamlet Ready For 'Most Vulnerable Students' To Return To Classroom
PITTSBURGH, PA (KDKA) -- For the second day in a row, the state is reporting its highest number of positive COVID-19 cases since the pandemic began.
As many school districts are turning to remote learning, Pittsburgh Public Schools is opening its doors to a select number of students on Monday. It will be the first time since March.
"Making sure we have our PPE, our sanitizer, making sure we have masks and everyone understands the expectation of wearing the mask and the importance of it as well," Superintendent Dr. Anthony Hamlet said.
The desks are spaced, the signs are up, but only about 20 students will walk the halls at Taylor Allderdice High School on Monday.
"We began to select based on those most vulnerable students who needed to come back into the classroom who was having difficulties with remote learning and who are some of these students who can't learn unless we have a teacher in front of them," Hamlet said.
Hamlet said across the district, 804 students were identified to return to the buildings. He believes that number could grow as more students need help.
"We have to test our infrastructure, meaning our wireless access points, meaning that when all the teachers and employees come back and have students in the building, can our system really manage this?" Hamlet said.
As for the rising COVID-19 numbers, not just in the county, but across the state, Hamlet said it's not a concern since the number of students returning is so small.
"We need to get some of those most vulnerable students in front of our teachers so we had to make a move so they actually could be educated," Hamlet said.
As for the rest of the student population, they will continue remote learning. A phased move to a full hybrid schedule will not happen before January 2021.
