Saluda County Superintendent details school reopening plan, one of first approved statewide

Saluda County is offering both traditional face-to-face and virtual options for students this fall

SALUDA COUNTY, S.C. (WOLO) — On Monday, South Carolina Superintendent of Education Molly Spearman approved reopening plans for six school districts.

By pitching both traditional and virtual options for their students, Saluda County Schools was one of the six districts who had their plans approved by the state’s Department of Education.

Dr. Harvey Livingston, the Superintendent of Saluda County Schools, told ABC Columbia that his district had a very collaborative approach towards planning for the school year, and that he was honored to have his district’s plan be one of the first to get the green light from the state.

With parents having a choice to put their children back in school five days a week, or having them learn online all semester, Dr. Livingston said the main focus of the district’s reopening plan is student and staff safety.

“We are taking all steps possible so we can assure a safe face-to-face start within our school building,” Dr. Livingston said.

Dr. Livingston says of 2,100 families surveyed, 70% want their children to receive face-to-face instruction this fall.

He says plexiglass is being installed around desks and ultraviolet air purifiers are making their debut in his schools this year. Dr. Livingston said his team was looking into installing the air purifiers prior to the pandemic, but says they will be in all schools by the time the school year starts.

Even with some new adjustments in the classroom, Dr. Livingston says his staff will have plenty of time to prepare.

“Our staff and our teachers will have nine days of work and professional development prior to students coming in so the education and training of our staff, our teachers, our parents, our students is going to be huge to make sure everybody is aware of the issues and everyone’s properly trained,” Dr. Livingston said.

Some other elements of Saluda County’s plan include an emphasis on strong communication with students and staff, and an inclusive strategy for serving students with disabilities and English language learners.

Coming off a year where the district’s high school football team won their first football championship in more than half a century, as well as the death of two students in a car crash back in January, Dr. Livingston said he is confident the community will rally around this plan, and work to keep students and staff safe.

With the first day of school set for August 31, Dr. Livingston said the key to a good year is togetherness and cooperation.

“As long as we can maintain our One Saluda motto, we feel very good about a safe start to the school year and a very successful 2020-21 school year,” Dr. Livingston said.

According to South Carolina’s Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC), Saluda County has had at least 385 reported cases and five reported deaths due to COVID-19. Saluda County is one of ten South Carolina counties with fewer than 400 confirmed cases of the virus.

The other five districts whose plans were approved by Superintendent Spearman Monday were: Allendale County School District, Anderson School District Five, Berkeley County School District, Spartanburg County School District Two, and Clover School District (York Two).