LEWISBERRY, Pa. — Five schools in the West Shore School District will move to remote learning today due to the anticipated heat.
According to superintendent Todd Stoltz, the decision was made based on the buildings that have no air conditioning and the chance of humidity inside the building.
“Our decision to switch to remote learning for those schools without air conditioning is based on information available through the National Weather Service, the anticipated duration of elevated temperatures and the challenge of cooling the buildings after heat has accumulated over multiple days,” said Stoltz.
Fairview, Fishing Creek and Newberry Elementary Schools will be attending class remotely today, Sept. 5. Morning kindergarten and grades one through five will begin classes at 9:30 a.m. with a morning meeting. Afternoon kindergarten will begin at 11:05 a.m. Elementary school students will end classes by 12:30 p.m. Zoom links will be provided by teachers via Seesaw.
Allen and New Cumberland Middle School will also be attending class online. Middle school classes will begin at 9:30 a.m. and end at 12:28 p.m. Select music ensembles will be held from 12:30-1 p.m. The Zoom schedule and links will be provided via Schoology.
Stoltz says educators prefer to have students in the building, but the recommendations from the National Weather Service show it’s not safe. The notice to parents said the superintendent’s top priority is the safety of the students and staff members. A decision to see if students will stay online throughout the week will come later today.
“On Tuesday, we will assess the conditions and make a determination at that time whether to reopen schools without air conditioning for the remainder of the week or to continue with remote learning," Stoltz said.
At this time, the forecast shows the weather conditions for Wednesday and Thursday to be very similar to those predicted for Tuesday.