(Des Moines) Iowa School Districts’ and non-public schools will soon be allowed to offer onsite summer learning activities.
Starting June 1, Iowa’s school districts and non-public schools can provide summer school, academic enrichment programs, STEM, Robotics, and drama. The relaxed guidelines come on the heels of Wednesday’s announcement of the opening of high school summer sports and additional recreational activities. Iowa Department of Education Director Ann Lebo announced the changes at Governor Reynolds’s daily briefing on Thursday morning.
Lebo said schools may still provide online summer learning and other distance learning approaches. Schools may now offer onsite learning opportunities according to specific health precautions. Some of the mitigation measures include; screening all staff and students upon arrival and teaching and reinforcing proper hand washing. Other guidelines involve distancing staff and students during instruction time by limiting the size of the group, increase spacing, mixing between groups, and implementing cleaning and disinfecting schedules.
Lebo says the summer learning opportunities is a local decision and based on the needs of their community and in consultation with their local public health officials.
The latest announcement allowing summer baseball and softball in Iowa only applies to high school teams. All other guidelines prohibit the use of weight rooms and out of season contact through July 1.
