BUFFALO, N.Y. — Students are still heading back to class whether it be for in-person learning or completely online. At REACH Academy Charter School, about 70 percent are going back for in-person learning.
Head of School Linda Marszalek says that's really important in closing the achievement gap.
"We have to focus on serving underprivileged kids that may not have the same resources as kids in the suburban districts have. So it's important for our scholars to be with us and we need to be here to teach them," Marszalek said.
Last Monday began the first week of classes, with half of students coming to in-person classes the first part of the week on Monday and Tuesday.
The other half of students came the second half.
Tuesday is the first time all students who chose to come to class in-person are back in the building.
Even with in-person classes back, classrooms that have been designed to make for a more interactive learning experience can't be used the same.
"Each of our classrooms have been designed to look more like a children's museum exhibit. So what's heartbreaking for me is to go through the rooms and see how we've had to alter them with tables and chairs or desks and chairs. they're not able to rotate around the room. they're not able to touch things like they used to," Marszalek said.
The head of school says about 30 percent of the school chose to do only remote learning.
However, every student will learn from home on Wednesdays.
That's when the building will be cleaned.
To accommodate its 450 kindergarten through fourth graders, the school will be handing out Chrome books next week at parent teacher conferences.
Persistence Preparatory Academy Charter School in downtown Buffalo also offered families a hybrid or completely virtual learning experience.
For those who chose the hybrid option, students will come to class every other week Monday through Thursday.
On Fridays, teachers will then prepare their lesson plans for the following week of virtual learning.
However, all students took class online during the first week which began August 31.
"So when we did launch the hybrid, even on days when students were home, they would be very comfortable with the way things were working and also allowed us to make sure that all the safety precautions were in place here at the school building," said Joelle Formato, Head of School at Persistence.