Aberdeen schools will implement a four-day-a-week schedule for all grades when school starts after spring break on Monday, April 12, Superintendent Alicia Henderson said Friday.

The decision follows Gov. Jay Inslee’s announcement that Washington state is following the revised CDC guidelines for social distancing in schools, dropping the recommended spacing between students in classrooms from six feet to three feet.

“This is a true game changer, as we can now accommodate students in classrooms without needing to divide them into smaller cohorts at all grade levels,” said Henderson.

The decision came down Friday from the Governor’s Office to recommend the three-foot spacing in classrooms, and Henderson said the district was prepared to make the announcement regarding Aberdeen schools quickly.

“We wanted to be prepared to respond quickly so we could give parents enough time to make preparations for any kind of changes in child care or transportation,” said Henderson, “and that is why we were pretty quick out of the box to share our revised schedule on Friday, just after the governor’s announcement.”

Adding two days to the student schedule creates a need for additional para-educators. Henderson said these are new positions to provide student supervision during meal times, recess, and getting on and off the buses, and also to make sure students are complying with masking and distancing requirements.

“We did lay off some staff last spring and all have been brought back,” or moved on to other jobs, said Henderson. “We don’t have anyone left on the furlough and rehire list anymore, so that’s great news. These positions are new because we know we need more support with all the students on campus.”

Those interested in the open para-educator positions can go to asd5.org and click on the “employment” tab. The positions are four days a week, five hours per day, and the pay range is $16.46-$20.02 hourly.

Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday will be classroom days; Wednesdays will remain a remote day. Students will still have the option of all-remote instruction. However, distance learners who wish to return in person after spring break are urged to contact their school as soon as possible so that classrooms can be prepared.

The district is working out details regarding breakfast and lunch, which continue to have the six-foot distancing recommendation, Henderson said. There will be some modifications to the current food service schedule.

“In the elementary school we will continue to serve the meals on campus,” said Henderson. “They will be utilizing multiple places for the meal service and that will include the cafeteria and other common areas, and there may be some continuing meals provided in the classrooms.”

Because the three-foot guideline is only good for classrooms and not for food service, “we can’t always do meals in a classroom,” said Henderson.

Hoquiam School District

Hoquiam Superintendent Mike Villarreal posted a video Friday on the district Facebook page, also calling the new requirements “a game changer.” He said the district is going to this week take a look at the current classroom models being used at its schools and make some decisions about moving forward.

“While the guidance said we could (implement the new recommendations) immediately, we are going to look at what is the best model for our district and what it means for us here in Hoquiam,” said Villarreal. He expects to have more information for parents and students by the end of the week. The district posts many of its updates on its Facebook page in video form, follow facebook.com/Hoquiam-School-District to view them.