Half-Day Schedules At Gloucester Township Schools To Continue

GLOUCESTER TOWNSHIP, NJ — Both of Gloucester Township's school districts will continue to operate on an early dismissal schedule due to a spike in COVID-19 cases. Both districts will be closed on Monday due to the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. From Jan. 18-21, they will both operate on half-day schedules.

“The early dismissal schedule provides school administration the flexibility to manage their building resources more effectively and maintain in-person instructional opportunities for our students,” Gloucester Township Superintendent of Schools John Bilodeau said in a letter to the community. “The ramifications of the COVID pandemic remain fluid and continue to adversely affect school operations. I want to thank you for your patience and request your continued support of our district. Please note that I will continue to update all parents, guardians, and staff in regard to the district’s future operating schedule.”

“In a half-school day model, we can utilize teachers to teach or cover classrooms beyond the normal range, and utilize part of the afternoon to meet contractual obligations, like a lunch period,” Black Horse Pike Regional School District Superintendent of Schools Brian Repici said. “We will continue to evaluate the most viable instructional schedule on a week-to-week basis and will communicate our intentions to caregivers, students, and staff, as early in the week as possible.”

Repici said the high school district plans a return to normal, full-day operations on Jan. 24, but families should be prepared for further changes based on the unpredictability of COVID-19 infections, coupled with New Jersey Department of Health isolation requirements.

“The half-day instructional model starts at 7:20 am, just like a normal school day, and ends at 11:45 am.,” Repici said. “Lunches will not be served, however, each child is eligible to take a grab-and-go lunch at the end of each school day. Students will attend six classes that are 40 minutes in length each half school day. Those classes will rotate just like our normal bell schedule so that students continue to be acclimated to our normal bell schedule. The bell schedule is currently posted on our websites’ homepages.”

Teachers will be available for office hours and extra help, remotely, after 1:40 pm each day. Students participating in extracurricular activities may stay in a study hall at the school until practices or meetings begin after 2:15 pm.

“Like the rest of the nation, our communities are experiencing increases in those with COVID symptoms, those identified as close contacts, or those testing positive for COVID,” Repici said. “Testing shortages are causing testing delays and have lengthened the time for testing confirmability. If your child(ren) experiences symptoms or tests positive for COVID-19, please keep them home and inform the school nurses, the school administration, and the teachers. For this week, to support families with this recommendation, account for testing delays, promote a continuous connection with the school, and reduce academic interruptions, we will provide more flexibility for students joining live-streamed classes. Please understand that this may be audio only.”