5 Sumter district schools now fully remote; majority of Chestnut Oaks Middle also learning remotely

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Amid the rapid spread of the omicron variant, the COVID-19 school shuffle between in-person and remote learning continues in Sumter School District.

With an announcement Tuesday afternoon, five district schools and the majority of students in another school have shifted temporarily to fully remote learning.

The current list includes Sumter High School, Alice Drive Elementary School, Alice Drive Middle School, Lemira Elementary School and Willow Drive Elementary School. Additionally, sixth- and seventh-graders at Chestnut Oaks Middle are learning remotely.

Students are scheduled to return at those schools on Monday, according to Shelly Galloway, the district's executive director of communication and community engagement.

The switches to remote instruction, she said, are because of the growing number of COVID-19 cases and low staff availability.

Six other schools in the district returned to in-person instruction Tuesday after being fully remote last week.

While in remote learning, Galloway said, students follow their class schedules, and Google links will be posted in Schoology. If a student's Chromebook was left at school, parents may retrieve it from the school's front office area.

She said that to ensure students from those schools receive breakfast and lunch for the week, schools have communicated with their families the day and location to pick up meals.

In a statement, the district also urged all community members to continue to practice mitigation strategies, such as washing their hands, physical distancing, wearing a mask, staying home if they have symptoms or are in the process of getting tested, and covering their mouth when they cough or sneeze.