Students to Participate in Hybrid Learning Model this Fall
Culinary arts teacher Tim Gardner, back center, welcomes senior students while teacher Laura Wood, front center, listens. (Courtesy Photo Essex Tech) 
Electrical teacher Chris Xerras addresses students on Wednesday. (Courtesy Photo Essex Tech) 
Naidy Castro, a senior of Salem, left, participates in a Biotechnology lab learning how to make her own sanitizer. (Courtesy Photo Essex Tech) 
The Essex Tech Hawk mascot welcomed students back to school, while sporting a mask, on Wednesday. (Courtesy Photo Essex Teech) 
The senior Information Technology Services shop, prepared to study Linux Essentials on Wednesday. Back row, from left: Carly Bates, of Marblehead; Blake Moody, of Swampscott; Ben Zeraski, of Lynnfield; Logan Roberts, of Gloucester; Harrison Chmura, of Marblehead; Ari Mertol, of Danvers. Center row, from left: Cadence Collins, of Peabody, and Lord Custodio, of Beverly. Front row, from left: Kyle Lovasco, of Beverly, and Greg Andriotakis, of Boxford. (Courtesy Photo Essex Tech)
DANVERS — Superintendent Heidi Riccio is pleased to share that Essex North Shore Agricultural and Technical School welcomed students back into the building this week for the first time since March.
New students to the district and freshmen visited the school yesterday for orientation activities, and classes for all students began today. Freshman and seniors attended school in person, approximately 800 students in all. Sophomores and juniors participated remotely, and will attend tomorrow in-person.
“Our administrative team, faculty and staff have worked tremendously hard to be able to safely welcome students back through our hybrid learning model, and we are so happy to be starting the school year and to be opening up our facility again,” Superintendent Riccio said. “The in-person component of agricultural and technical learning in particular is unparalleled, and we’re thankful we are able to safely allow students to continue their education in their programs in the building.”
The District is pursuing a hybrid learning model where students will be separated into two groups, which will allow for approximately 50% of the students to be in the building at any given time on an alternating schedule.
Students will be grouped into cohorts for their academic courses, and will resume their career and technical education through their shops. They will follow a two week rotating schedule for in-person and remote learning for both academic and vocational classes.
Students, faculty and staff will be required to wear masks at all times during in-person learning, and mask breaks will be incorporated throughout the day. Six feet of physical distance will also be required in the building, including in classroom and shop spaces.
The District has also made hand washing and sanitizing stations available throughout the facility, and outdoor classroom spaces will be used whenever possible. To learn more about Essex Tech’s reopening plan, click here.
“We’ve missed our students dearly since we closed our facility in March due to COVID-19. It’s exciting to be able to come back together as a community, even as we navigate new challenges posed to us by the pandemic and adapt to mask wearing, social distancing, and so on,” Principal Shannon Donnelly said. “Thank you to our students, families, faculty and staff for your cooperation, patience and above all, your positivity and flexibility. These are the characteristics that make Essex Tech a wonderful place to be.”
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