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Hyde County’s Board of Education voted February 2 for its schools to move from Plan C, all remote instruction to Plan B, hybrid instruction, in-person and remote instruction. As the board specified in their meeting, plans for Mattamuskeet and Ocracoke campuses will look different. Building-level administrators are still working out all the specifics at each school.

On Feb. 8, the Hyde County Schools administration issued a press release with some specifics.

Common to both Mattamuskeet Campus and Ocracoke School, “both Remote Instruction and In-Person Instruction will continue to be offered to our students.

“We have requested that parents inform their schools no later than Wednesday, Feb. 10, if they wish to change the status of their students, remote or In-person,” stated the release.

On the Mattamuskeet Campus:

The Mattamuskeet School Campus will resume in-person instruction beginning Tuesday, Feb. 16 while continuing remote instruction for those who choose to remain remote.

In-person days will be Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays each week from 7:45 a.m. to 1 p.m.

“As we have very limited numbers of staff district-wide, we feel strongly that we continue with a 1 p.m. dismissal to the instructional day in order to provide teachers with time in their regular workday schedule to provide students with remote learning opportunities,” stated the release.

At this time, Mondays and Fridays will be remote learning days. Students will still be expected to complete assignments on remote learning days.

“How smoothly students and staff make the transition back to the In-person setting while re-establishing safety protocols will determine how soon we are able to add additional In-person days to the instructional week,” the release continued. “Those decisions will be made in consultation with and with input from individual Building Administrators. Future updates to the schedule will be released as necessary….”

Schools will use the rosters from last semester’s in-person instructional days.

“Teachers at both schools will soon be contacting your children with any scheduling updates. Principals will post Master Schedules for each school prior to the week of Feb. 15.

“After Feb. 15, Home Meal Delivery Program will continue to operate for mainland families on Remote Learning Days, Mondays and Fridays only.”

On the Ocracoke Campus:

The release stated that Ocracoke will begin reopening its “campus to In-person Instruction by administering State required exams from last semester. Teachers with State-required first semester exams will hold review sessions for students who must complete these exams. The overall timeline for these review sessions and returning to In-person Instruction will be determined on Friday, Feb. 12, with the goal of holding the exam review sessions the week of Feb. 15-19.

“Ocracoke School will begin holding In-person Instructional days on Tuesdays and Thursdays each week from 7:55 a.m. and 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 and 1 p.m. Again, we feel strongly that we continue with a 1 p.m. dismissal to the instructional day in order to provide teachers with time in their regular workday schedule to provide students with remote learning opportunities.

“At this time, Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays will be Remote Learning Days. Students will still be expected to complete assignments on Remote Learning Days.

“How smoothly students and staff make the transition back to the In-person setting while putting in place safety protocols will determine how soon we are able to add additional In-person days to the instructional week. Those decisions will be made in consultation with and with input from individual Building Administrators. Future updates to the schedule will be released as necessary . . .

“Staff is encouraged to contact Principal Cole for any changes in room assignments and timelines for setting up their classrooms.

All Hyde County Schools:

“Hyde County Schools is in the process of rolling out a new app that can be downloaded on personal cell phones which will enable parents to provide temperature checks/verification and answer the required Health and Safety Questions on their phones before arriving at school. This should rapidly accelerate admission into our buildings each morning and assist us in preventing large numbers of students and parents congregating in entrance areas. This should also reduce the number of staff members needed to monitor admission procedures. Additional training will be provided for staff on the app before releasing it for parent and student use.

“We are continuing to assist in scheduling vaccination opportunities. Many staff members are now coming up on their second vaccination appointment. If we can be of any assistance, please contact Nancy Leach at nleach@hyde.k12.nc.us and we will do our best to assist you.

“As you are all quite aware, the most important thing we can do to keep our schools safe and open is to follow all the established protocols including the Three W’s: Wash your hands, Wear a mask, and Wait 6 feet apart from others! We must do everything in our power to ensure the health and safety of our schools which means always adhering to the recommended safety protocols. There may be a point in the future when we can relax and ease some of those requirements, but now is not that time. The example we set for our students will be the expectations our students will emulate.”

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