The Cordell School District opened its doors last week for the start of the new year and School Supt. Brad Overton said Tuesday, “Everything is going as expected. It’s going smoothly,” he added.
Overton added, “We’ve asked parents to transport their students to school and they are complying.”
He said with that, the number of students riding the bus is way down. “We are requiring students and bus drivers to wear masks while on the bus and social distance as they can. We’re trying to limit the number of students on buses to between 35 and 40.”
Bus drivers are sanitizing the buses after every trip, Overton noted.
The superintendent stated, “We ask parents, too, not to send their students to school if they have a fever or don’t feel well.”
Overton reported current enrollment district-wide as of Tuesday is around 630 students. “That’s down about 50,” he said.
Students and teachers are strongly encouraged to wear masks. “Some teachers are, some aren’t,” he added.
Overton believes Elementary students and teachers are doing well with wearing masks and Junior High and High School are what he described as “hit and miss.”
Of the 630 students in the district, Overton estimates, “We probably have 20 kids doing total virtual. In Junior High and High School, we have a Blended model where the student attends school half a day and the other half attends virtually. We have about 30 doing that.”
He points out the overwhelming majority are attending traditionally.
“I think the kids at Junior High and High School also are ready to get back and see their classmates and participate in extracurricular activities,” Overton commented.
Fall athletics include softball and football. “Softball already has played several games and our football team has a scrimmage this Friday night at home against Watonga and Merritt and next Friday night they open the season,” Overton stated.
They open Aug. 28 on the road against Sayre.
Overton emphasized, “Our goal is to keep our doors open, keep the kids here. And ask the people to keep doing what they are doing. We want to keep the kids in school.”
Elementary Principal Alan Hull said, “It’s been pretty exciting. Kids are glad to be back. They are excited and it’s good to see everybody. The parents and the teachers and I are glad to see them.”
On Monday Hull said school began last week (Thursday, Aug. 13), “so this is day three. We have 354 students in grades pre-K through 6.”
He described the very first day of school as smooth, “until the bus trip home. We had new bus drivers and new bus numbers. Even some of the kids who rode the bus last year were confused and then Friday it was smooth again.”
Hull added, “everything is going pretty smoothly in the classroom.”
He continued, “We have a virtual option intended for those students who have health issues, who need to protect themselves we have some who are doing that.”
He said there are 11 students attending virtually and that’s included in the total of 354.
The elementary school is not required to wear masks. “We are highly recommending them. It’s almost unanimous, a mask or a face shield,” Hull said.