Brian Perry, South Carolina/Fort Stewart Community Superintendent with DODEA Americas Southeast District, welcomes families of Pierce Terrace and C.C. Pinckney elementary schools in a recorded video. Fort Jackson and school officials announced Fort Jackson Schools would reopen for in-person teaching Jan. 25. (Screenshot)
By Robert Timmons Fort Jackson Public Affairs
“As a result, in coordination with military leadership and keeping the health and safety of our students and staff in mind, we will begin in-person learning on post beginning Monday, Jan. 25,” wrote Brian Perry, superintendent of the Department of Defense Education Activity Americas Southeast District’s SC/Ft. Stewart community, in a letter to parents. “During this transition, students will continue with remote learning. Additionally, our schools are working with the District Office to ensure that we have our logistics functions set up to be able to activate our bus transportation and our normal Student Meal Program.”
The school principals, Raymond Burk, from Pierce Terrace, and Ryan Smith, C.C. Pinckney, sent detailed information to parents regarding their children’s return to school Jan. 15.
“It’s all about … honesty and integrity,” said Brig. Gen. Milford H. “Beags” Beagle Jr., Fort Jackson commander, during the Commanding General’s Biweekly Virtual Town Hall on Special Topics Jan. 14. “What has allowed us to do so well throughout this is people being honest and having a high level of integrity.”
“If you feel sickly, go home quickly,” he added. “Do the right thing. If not, it is going to affect somebody else and we don’t want that happening in our schools or anywhere else.”
One of the important tasks to complete prior to the first day of classroom instruction is the Prescreening Protocol and Acknowledgement for Students. A copy can be downloaded at https://www.dodea.edu/u load/Home-based-Screening-Acknowledgment-for-Students-and-Adults-12-02-20.pdf or check www.dodea.edu/returntoschool.cfm under the School Operations in COVID-19 Tab.
“If you feel sickly, go home quickly. Do the right thing. If not, it is going to affect somebody else and we don’t want that happening in our schools or anywhere else.” - Brig. Gen. MIlford H. "Beags" Beagle Jr., Fort Jackson commander.
Pierce Terrace and C.C. Pinckney will collect the forms during their materials return and pick up days on Jan. 21-22.
“Your support and involvement will be critical to a smooth and safe transition back to the classroom,” he wrote. School leadership involvement with COVID protocols is a must, Perry said at the town hall.
“Principals will be ultimately responsible” for ensuring their staff are following the protocols.
Some of the protocols the schools will follow include cloth face coverings, maintaining social distancing, and bringing an individual water bottle to school.
“All of these are part of the 'new normal' as our school communities work together during this unprecedented time,” Perry wrote. “Restoring teaching and learning to the familiar environments of our classrooms provides students with stability and continuity so a return to in-person learning was important as soon as it was safe to do so.”
“We are all in this together,” he said. “When parents walk with their kids to school it is important they are wearing their masks and separated six feet apart.”
The schools have been working closely with post leadership to monitor and assess the health and safety conditions. Both principals walked Beagle through their plans giving him a “high level of faith in our team.”
To learn more about the reopening or to learn more about Fort Jackson, watch the town hall in its entirety at https://www.facebook.com/fortjackson/videos/773929593519040.
Video messages from Perry, Burk and Smith can be found at each school’s Facebook page. These videos detail processes each school will use when schools resume.