ST. CLOUD -- With the start of the 2020-2021 school year looming just over the horizon, the St. Cloud Area School District is looking for feedback from students, staff, and parents.

The Minnesota Department of Education has already outlined three possible scenarios for schools reopening and have yet to release their final guidelines.

Assistant Superintendent of Secondary Education Laurie Putnam says right now they are focusing most of their planning on the hybrid and distance learning options.

We've really been focusing on what are the health and safety measures that would be universal, regardless of the three scenarios, and then really looking at those hybrid and distance learning options since those are the most different from our standard practices to make sure that we are offering the best, most high-quality experience that we can.

On Monday as part of their planning for the uncertain fall ahead, the district sent out a survey to parents. Putnam says tan important step in their planning process is collecting data from families.

Some of the questions we asked were you know are there health conditions that would impact you from being able to send your child back to school. There's a question asking do you intend to use our transportation, do you intend to take the bus or will you drive or walk. There are questions about what is important to you in terms of health safety.

Putnam says parents will have the option to keep their kids home even if schools do reopen at full or 50 percent capacity.

The next part of the process will include opportunities for virtual meetings between principals and parents, principals and high school students, and principals and staff members. Putnam says the invitation to those meetings will include comment boxes for anyone who cannot attend to share any thoughts or concerns they have.

The superintendent’s cabinet will be compiling the feedback from the survey and virtual meetings and present their plan to the school board on August 5th.

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