(La Porte, IN) - School buildings in La Porte will be open to students when the school year begins next week.  For now, students whose parents chose the option of in-school learning will report to their school buildings daily for the first two weeks of school under a COVID-19 operating procedure adopted by the school board.

 

During a Monday night executive session of the school board, the administration reported the number of people testing positive for the virus over the previous 14 day period in La Porte County was 5.3 percent.  Anything lower than 5.9 percent flashes green under the traffic light system formed to guide decisions on school building attendance, school officials said.  A green light means school buildings are open for learning every day of the week.

 

A yellow light flashes when the percentage of people in La Porte County testing positive ranges from 6.0 to 15.9, officials said.  A yellow light means school building are open anywhere from one to four days a week with e-learning at home for the remainder of the week.

 

Superintendent Mark Francesconi said masks are mandatory on buses and inside school buildings whenever six feet of distance from other individuals cannot be maintained.

 

He said about 70-percent of the students will be returning to school for in-person instruction.