Dear Parents/Guardians,

On Tuesday, January 26^th, the Altoona Area Board of Directors approved bringing students back to face-to-face instruction using an A-B hybrid schedule. The schedule will be structured in the following manner:

Elementary, Kindergarten through Fifth grade, students will return on Monday, February 8^th. The hybrid schedule will be divided into the same two groups as occurred in November but the schedule will be more consistent in structure.

• Group “A” will attend Mondays, Wednesdays and every other/opposite Friday.
• Group “B” will attend Tuesdays, Thursdays and every other/opposite Friday.

The reason for the switch was to provide better consistency for children and coordination of secondary and elementary schedules for families with children at both levels. A hard copy of the actual schedule will be sent out by the building principals during the week of February 1^st.

Secondary, Sixth through Twelfth grade, students will return on Tuesday, February 16^th.  The hybrid schedule will be divided into the same two groups as occurred in November but the schedule has the same structure as the Elementary schools.

• Group “A” will attend Mondays, Wednesdays and every other/opposite Friday.
• Group “B” will attend Tuesdays, Thursdays and every other/opposite Friday.

With these matching schedules, principals will be able to keep families attending on the same days and coordinate attendance schedules with the Greater Altoona Career and Technology Center to ensure minimal instructional conflicts between the two programs.

While, as a community, we have experienced a significant drop in the COVID-19 infections rate and in the percentage of people testing positive for COVID-19, we need to stay vigilant in the use of mitigation strategies and techniques. All students attending in-person instruction must wear either face masks or face shields with both their mouth and nose covered while in the building or riding district transportation. We will be following CDC guidelines for social distancing to the maximum extent physically possible in our school buildings, on school buses and on district property.

Many concerns remain regarding community spread and taking the necessary preventative actions. I know that working together as a team, we can ensure all of our children, faculty, and staff a safe return to the classroom and face-to-face instruction.

Sincerely,

​​​​​​​Charles A. Prijatelj, Ed.D.

Superintendent of Schools