In a pandemic year marked by shuttered schools, technology barriers and staggered reopenings, failing grades and student absences have grown across Michiana.
Course failures have more than doubled in the South Bend Community School Corp. this year and chronic absenteeism has âskyrocketed,â one administrator said.
With in-person instruction increasing this month and the stateâs spring testing window around the corner, educators are using what theyâve learned over the last year to better understand learning loss and prepare for an eventual return to a more normal school year next fall.
Still, challenges remain, such as shortages of teachers and reliable data.
SOUTH BEND â Despite pleas from parents, some school board members, and others to delay the move, the South Bend school board voted Monday to close Hay and Tarkington elementary schools.
After more than two and a half hours of informational presentations and questions, the board voted to shutter the schools at the end of this school year as a first step in Superintendent Todd Cummingsâ districtwide ârightsizing.â
Before the vote, Jeanette McCullough, an at-large board member, moved to table the measure, but the effort failed.
During the administrationâs discussion of the closure recommendations, board members questioned which schools the affected students will be sent to and debated what that will mean for class sizes.
South Bend leaders anticipate no teacher cuts in proposed school closures southbendtribune.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from southbendtribune.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.