Germantown Municipal School District lays out plan for in-person learning amid pandemic

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) - We’re working to get all your important questions answered as kids prepare to head back to the classroom.

Action News 5 spoke with Superintendent Jason Manuel with Germantown Municipal School District in Tennessee.

Manuel said the new school year comes with a lot of exciting things for the district.

“We have a new school,” Manuel said. “It’s been a while since we’ve had a new school. We opened Forrest Hill Elementary School, but we are also offering a new type of school, Germantown Online Academy, and that’s for students in grades 6-12 who want to choose a virtual option and continue to meet their needs in different ways.”

He also spoke about the district’s strategic plan to help connect students and to focus on mental health after the ups and down of the past year.

“We’re talking about whole groups, school-wide engagement pieces,” Manuel said. “How students can be plugged in to the culture of the school and really help them focus on their needs.”

While students are returning to the classroom, there are no plans at this point for events like homecoming.

“We don’t have those types of events scheduled at this time because we don’t think based on the case data and what we’re experiencing that those would be wise decisions,” Manuel said.

The first day of school for Germantown Municipal School District is Monday, August 9.

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