SPOKANE VALLEY, Wash. — For the first time in nearly a year, some students in the Central Valley School District will be returning to their classrooms.
Students who have chosen options 1 or 4 will return to in-person learning in a phased in hybrid schedule starting Monday, Feb. 1, according to a message on the school district's website.
Central Valley School District has been slowly phasing students back into the classroom since mid-September. Their latest update brings back students in seventh through twelfth grade for in-person learning one day a week.
“It’s definitely been a struggle and a learning experience,” Central Valley parent, Kyndra Dalton, said of distance learning.
Dalton has six children in the school district.
“My oldest is a junior and then I have an 8th grader, a 6th grader, a 4th grader, and a 2nd grader. Then one that’ll be in kindergarten.”
On top of her full-time responsibility as a parent, she’s in the middle of working on her master's degree with a focus on mental health.
Balancing it all has been no easy task, but over this school year, she’s seen her children return to in-person learning one by one.
Making sure they stay up to date with their education has been a top priority.
“Typically we have a lot of outlets that we can utilize but most of them have been taken away,” Dalton explained.
While older students make their way back, current schedules will only allow them on campus for one day out of the week.
CVSD has said the district will closely follow guidance from the Spokane Regional Health District.
The district may increase the amount of time students can learn in-person depending on the course of the pandemic.
“We just need to continue to find the good in the situations, and what we can learn and benefit,” Dalton said.
She believes these moments are vital not only for her children but for all students across the region and their mental health.