CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (CLARKSVILLENOW) – Classes opened Monday, Aug. 31, for Clarksville-Montgomery County Schools, as the 40 schools in the system began the 2020-21 year. Monday and Tuesday will both be half-days, with the first full day of school on Wednesday, Sept. 2.
Teachers and staff greeted students at Norman Smith Elementary on Greenwood Avenue as they stepped off the buses and parents dropped off the children from their vehicles.
All of the bus drivers, teachers and staff, as well as students and parents, were wearing masks, and teachers also sprayed each student’s hands with sanitizer before they entered the building. Social distancing was encouraged.
“Every first day of school is a mix of emotions. I’ll tell you that seeing the students’ faces, seeing the parents and our teachers and our staff, just so excited to greet students back, it felt like a really good day,” said Anthony Johnson with Clarksville-Montgomery County Schools.
Johnson added that they were excited to kick off this school year for both the traditional and virtual students. About 60 percent of parents of CMCSS students chose traditional, in-person education, with around 40 percent of parents deciding on K-12 Virtual.
Parents and guardians of more than 36,500 students in addition to 5,100 CMCSS employees had the opportunity in June to complete a survey about the safe return to school during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The survey had a 50 percent response rate, with 54 percent of parents/guardians and 60 percent of employees preferring returning to the traditional, in-person setting based on comfort level and safety concerns.
The reopening process for schools was led by the CMCSS Communicable Disease Team with leaders from all school departments along with the Montgomery County Health Department.