SMSD announced their decision to start the school year completely online in a letter to families Tuesday.

Students who chose the in-person learning model receive instruction in one of three ways—in-person, hybrid or remote—based on gating criteria decided by the county. If 15% or more of tests come back positive or there is an increasing number of cases, the county is in the remote only zone and students will learn remotely, with sports and extracurriculars completely cancelled. If 10-15% of tests come back positive and there is a 14-day plateau or decrease in cases, the county is in the red zone and students will learn remotely, with sports and extracurriculars also cancelled. If 5-10% of tests come back positive and there is a 14-day plateau or decrease in cases, the county is in the yellow zone, meaning students will use the hybrid model with restrictions on sports and extracurriculars. If there are less than or equal to 5% positive tests with a 14-day plateau or decrease in cases, the county is in the green zone, meaning students will learn fully in-person with sports and extracurriculars operating as usual (with some safety restrictions).

The Johnson County Department of Health and Environment (JCDHE) announced Tuesday that the county will be in the red zone for the start of the school year Sept. 8. While they didn’t mandate that all schools in the county start virtually, the district said in their letter that they will be following this guidance.

Following the JCDHE guidelines, sports and activities are also suspended until further notice. SMSD activities will halt after Aug. 21. The district has reached out to the Kansas State High School Activities Association (KSHSAA) to consider moving fall sports seasons to the spring if athletics are unable to resume.

“While starting remotely is in the best interest of students and staff, it is our intent that, as county data improve, we can transition to the hybrid model,” the letter reads. “The ultimate goal is to eventually transition to full in-person learning for all students, as county health conditions allow.”