Fayette County Public Schools Superintendent Manny Caulk wrote a letter to FCPS families regarding the upcoming 2020-2021 school year.

“A broad-based committee of students, families, teachers, health officials, principals and district leaders has been working for months to develop plans for the 2020-2021 school year. Although the spread of COVID-19 in our community remains a constantly changing situation, you can be certain that our commitment to safeguarding the health, safety and well-being of our students, families and employees remains constant. Every decision we make will be in accordance with guidance from federal, state and local health authorities including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Kentucky Governor’s Office, Kentucky Department for Public Health and Lexington-Fayette County Health Department.

This afternoon, Gov. Andy Beshear, Kentucky Interim Commissioner of Education Kevin Brown and Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman released the new “Healthy at School” guidelines. We are actively in the process of reviewing the new information to ensure that our planning is aligned with the expectations and best practices they announced today. I expect to be able to share more detailed information about our current thinking with you soon, but I do want to let you know what we are certain of at this time:

  1. We will not return to school in July. In May, districts were advised to develop calendars that would allow for an early start in late July, a normal start in August, and a delayed start after Labor Day. We are confident that we will not return to school in July.
  2. We are committed to providing in-person instruction in some form. Students learn best when they are in class with their teachers and peers and we are doing everything possible to safely make face-to-face schooling a reality.
  3. We are actively working to develop robust distance learning options for families seeking an alternative to on-campus instruction because of health considerations and in the event that Non-Traditional Instruction (NTI) has to be implemented again.
  4. Collaboration with families will be critical to the success of any school reopening scenario. Schools are a reflection of the communities they serve and we will need your help to safely launch the 2020-2021 school year.

Thank you again for your continued support as we work to do what’s best for students.”