RHS prepares for in-person classes beginning Sept. 28
By Ben Bruni, RHS Principal

Russellville High School 

Return to In-Person Classes Plan 

A - B Grouping - The Big Points   

• Groups are determined by student LAST NAME

• Group A - Student last names beginning with A through J
• Group B - Student last names beginning with K through Z

• Families with students at RMS and RHS will be placed in the same group for both schools. 

• All Family Units will have the same days for classes. 
• Families Units with students with more than one last name will be grouped into the same group. 

• Group change requests are NOT available as all students will have equitable access to learning opportunities regardless of grouping.

• Some school-based Group change decisions may occur based on special services needs. Those families will be individually contacted regarding these changes.
• Current VLA students will remain in their current model until the conclusion of the 1st Semester.  

A - B Important Dates 

Monday, September 21st - Wednesday, September 23rd - Parents/Guardians contacted regarding grouping

Monday, September 28th - Group A return to in-person classes. 

Tuesday, September 29th - Group B return to in-person classes. 

A - B Student Groupings

Students have been placed in either:

Group A - Students with last names beginning with A through J

Group B - Students with last names beginning with K through Z

Students who live in a household in which there are more than one last name will be grouped together and placed in a similar group. 

A - B Schedule 

Students will attend classes on a rotating schedule based on Groupings

They will attend classes in their normal class sequences and for their normal class times. 

The Weekly Schedule will follow the same design weekly and Group A will always be in-person on Mondays and Wednesdays while Group B will always be in-person on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

Students will only be permitted in the building DURING SCHOOL HOURS (7:15 - 3:00) on their designated days. 

Students participating in AFTERSCHOOL activities and athletics may come to those on a daily basis AFTER the 3:00 bell. Example: A Band student in Group A may not attend Band during 8th Period of the school day on a Group B day but may attend afterschool band practice on a Group B day.   

A - B Food Services - Pending Approval  

Based on the food services plans of several area districts we have consulted with who are currently using the A-B Model, and collaboration with RISD Food Services, RMS and RHS will provide the following food services weekly to students while in the A-B Model (pending approval):

All students will be given food bags containing breakfast and lunch for the NTI duration of their days outside of school.

A - B Timeline 

In order to provide parents with the ability to make plans for childcare as well as for instructional design planning, the following is the RMS/RHS A-B Model Timeline. This is subject to change based on need or significant changes regarding COVID school attendance as dictated by the Russellville Board of Education and local and state Health Department Guidance. 

In the event of an increase in COVID related cases, guidance from local and/or state health authorities, this timeline would be subject to RMS/RHS’s return to NTI design learning. 

In the event of positive trends related to COVID cases, RMS/RHS may consider a recommendation to the RISD Board of Education for an  increase in the number of in-person attendance days by students. 

A - B School Day Hours, Expectations  

• RHS Parents, Guardians, and students will need to understand that school day hours will change with the return to in-person attendance. 
• Students present in the building will follow normal school day hours. 
• Students learning remotely from home will need to be working on supplementary materials and instruction provided by their teachers between the hours of 8 AM and 3 PM. 
• Doors open for school at 7:15 AM. 

A - B Rationale 

• Aligns with the practices of our other area Districts of Barren Co., Bowling Green Independent, Logan Co., and Warren Co. 
• Keeps students and teachers in a digital hybrid model for potential future need.
• Builds progressively towards the potential for more days to be added.
• Creates a greater spacial Healthy at School logistical designs for: 

• Hallways
• Bathrooms
• Cafeteria 
• Classrooms
• Reduces the potential for contact tracing exposure due to classes having a greater potential for  social distancing.  
• Allows for intentional deep-dive instruction with small groups of students.   

A - B Contact Tracing 

A - B Instructional Design 

During the A-B Design, RHS Students will be learning and working in-person and at home. While students will be present at school twice a week, it is important that all parents/guardians and students understand that there will continue to be work and learning done while at home. 

Beginning Monday, September 28th, there will no longer be mandatory Google Meets. 

During A-B Days, teachers will be available during their planning periods to work with students who may have email-based or Google Classroom based questions regarding work being done at home.

A - B Transportation 

• Regular bus routes will run during the RMS/RHS A-B Model. 
• Pickup and Drop off times will remain the same. 
• All students riding busses MUST wear a mask at all times. 
• Students will be temperature checked before loading buses. 
• Students who do not ride the bus will be temperature checked prior to admittance to the social access of the building.
• Students may be dropped off from 7:15 - 7:45 at the front of the HS. 
• RHS Dismissal time is 3:00 PM. 

A - B Healthy at School Guidelines 

• Masks must be worn at all times. 

• Students may remove masks when eating and/or drinking. 
• Students must wear a mask, even when socially distanced in the school building. 
• The school will have masks available for students who have a need for one.

• . Student work will remain predominantly digital to reduce the amount of common materials contacts. 

• RHS Employees will wear masks at all times in which other persons are present. 

• Social Distancing will be intentionally maintained as best possible. 

• Classrooms will have pre-marked socially distanced seating. 

• ALL Classes, Breakfast/Lunch, and general gathering areas WILL have seating charts for contact tracing purposes.  

• All desks / seating will face the same direction in classrooms and common spaces. 

• Hallways will be directionally controlled for traffic flow. 

• There will be no lockers used for the Fall Semester. 

• All persons entering the building will enter initially through the front lobby doors where they will be screened and have their temperature taken (Bus riders will not need to have their temperature taken again as that they do this when loading the bus). 

• RHS will NOT be allowing items to be dropped off for students during the school day.

• Surfaces will be sanitized in between uses.

• Classrooms will be wiped down/sanitized between classes. 
• Lunchroom seating will be wiped down/sanitized between lunches. 

• No-touch hand sanitizer dispensers have been placed in all classrooms.