After 10 months of online learning, many Anchorage elementary students are finally returning to classrooms Published January 18
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Print article At Anchorage’s Creekside Park Elementary School on Friday, kindergarten teacher Rhiana Gay put the finishing touches on her classroom’s setup, placing clips holding face masks on the edges of the desks in preparation for the first day of in-person classes this school year. Most elementary students in pre-kindergarten through the second grade, and special education students in self-contained classrooms through the sixth grade, are set to start school in-person at 9:30 a.m. Wednesday.
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] Anchorage classrooms have been closed since March to in-person learning, and as they prepare to finally begin reopening, they are contending with a serious health risk and implementing scores of precautionary measures.
Changing tiers, cross-border vaccines, contingency plans: News from around our 50 states From USA TODAY Network and wire reports, USA TODAY
Alabama
Montgomery: A state hotline for COVID-19 vaccination appointments has been overwhelmed with calls after Alabama announced Friday that the state will begin giving the shots to people 75 years old or older, as well as first responders, later this month. The Alabama Department of Public Health said Saturday that the telephone number received 1.1 million calls in the first day of being open to the public. The Health Department pleaded with people not to call unless they are in the eligible groups. “Due to the overwhelming amount of calls, our target population cannot get through to schedule their appointments,” the health department wrote in a social media post. The state health department said the free vaccinations can be made by appointment only. Eligible people can call the ADPH toll-free phone number at 1-855-566-5
Anchorage teachers seek delay in return to class instruction
by The Associated Press
Last Updated Jan 8, 2021 at 9:44 am EDT
ANCHORAGE, Alaska Some teachers in Anchorage have asked the school district to delay a return to in-person instruction until they are eligible for the coronavirus vaccine.
While some educators and school staff are ready to return to classrooms with or without a vaccine, others said they are being forced to choose between employment or staying safe.
State health officials said frontline, essential workers likely will not begin receiving vaccines until late February.
The Anchorage School District plans to reopen schools Jan. 19 for elementary students in pre-K through second grade and high-needs, special education students through the sixth grade.