Monday marks start of school year for numerous metro schools

A much different start to the school year kicked off Monday for 22 school districts in the Kansas City metro.

This week, several districts have chosen to make an altered plan for students beginning studies as COVID-19 persists.

Nearly every district had a different plan, some having students and staff return to classrooms in-person, some having them begin online and the rest on a hybrid schedule.

Some of the largest school districts returning Monday include the Independence School District, the Hickman Mills School District and the Raymore-Peculiar School District, reports KMBC 9 News.

For K-12 students in Independence, classes have started earlier than other districts in the county, neighboring schools planning to start after Labor Day.

Independence schools are among those districts that are starting with a hybrid plan.

Independence School District Superintendent Dr. Dale Herl said that the district had more than 4,000 students, faculty and staff participate in summer school this year with no spread of the virus, reports KMBC 9 News.

Ray-Pec schools are taking a different approach, cutting class sizes in half combined with a hybrid learning model for grades six through 12.

Contributing to reduced class sizes, the school district reported that 20% of families opted for all-virtual learning.

Another large school district that opened Monday was Hickman Mills which had students begin learning virtually.

A list of school districts in the metro and their reopening plans can be found here.