Central Coast schools prepare to welcome students back
MONTEREY, Calif. (KION) Schools across the Central Coast are getting ready to welcome their students back for the new school year.
The Monterey Peninsula Unified School District and other districts are beginning in-person instruction on Wednesday, and MPUSD said they are prepared and have classrooms ready.
In total, MPUSD has more than ten thousand students and they expect to see more than 95% of students return.
Marina Vista Elementary School expects to see more than 400 students walking through the school hallways.
“We actually went to go see her classroom, so she can meet her teacher," said Castro. "She's a little shy, but I think once she kind of gets into the system, and really goes in and having a good time with her friends, I think she'll enjoy it.”
Castro's daughter will be starting kindergarten on Wednesday but it will be her first time going to school in person.
The district has added portable sinks for students to wash their hands, as well as signs reminding students about wearing masks as they wander from one area to another.
“We've been in school since spring,” said MPUSD's Chief of Communication Marci McFadden. ”We also operated Summer Academy at almost all of our schools with little to no incident. Again, the big emphasis is wearing masks, washing hands frequently, and just ensuring that we keep everyone in a safe situation while they're on campus.”
Francisco Morazan is a Kindergarten Teacher at Marina Vista Elementary. He hopes the long months of distance learning are done and looks forward to seeing students roaming the halls of marina elementary school on a regular basis, he said.
"With kindergarten, it's so important to be in person, with the younger kids, it's very helpful for them, to have that personal connection," said Mr. Morazan. "I really can't wait to see them in the hallways, say hello, and just welcome them back to school."
MPUSD has a newly formed digital academy that was also made available for families who were not fully ready to have their students back in person and only 120 students opted for that decision.
