Kalamazoo schools to stay virtual for rest of the year

Students in the Kalamazoo Public School district will take classes online for the rest of the school year.

The district’s Superintendent Rita Raichoudhuri announced Thursday evening that classes will continue remotely during the last trimester of the school year, which begins March 15.

School leaders have been debating two options for weeks: Remain online or move to a hybrid model that would have students attending classes in person two days per week. After weighing data and polling parents and teachers, officials decided the virtual option was the most palatable.

“We surveyed parents and employees and reviewed research and health department data,” said Raichoudhuri in a post on the district’s Facebook page. “A majority of KPS employees and parents who responded to the survey supported the virtual option over the two-day-a-week hybrid learning model.”

Parents Respond

Some parents were overjoyed at the announcement, but not everyone is happy.

“You should be ashamed of this. Why are other schools in the county going back?” wrote one parent on Facebook.

“I feel bad for every SINGLE student especially the Seniors that have not been in class with there friends since last March,” wrote another.

Still, many parents felt the hybrid plan would not have been a better option.

“The hybrid option was a joke. Two days in school and three days watch videos on your own, with little to no teacher assistance,” wrote one parent.

What’s Next

Raichoudhuri said the district will now shift its focus to planning how students can return to classes next fall. It is expected the pandemic will still be ongoing in September when students return to school. However, vaccinations may be at a level high enough to keep the coronavirus at bay.

Raichoudhuri also announced plans for Summer Readiness Camps aimed at helping students who fell behind during the 2020-21 school year.

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