Bladen County Board of Education approves, 7-2, to use Plan A for all students PreK-12

ELIZABETHTOWN — Students in Bladen County Schools will return to the classroom following spring break.

The Board of Education met in special called session on Monday night in response to the agreement achieved last week by the legislature and Gov. Roy Cooper.

• What happened: The board voted 7-2 to bring all students, grades pre-kindergarten through 12th grade, into Plan A starting on April 12. Voting against were Gary Rhoda and Cory Singletary.

• Why it matters: The board needed just more than 10 minutes to make the decision, but discussion came after the vote rather than before.

Bladen County Schools has elementary students in Plan A already. Middle and high school students are in Plan B.

Parents still have the option to keep students home and do remote learning.

Students will be in school each weekday except for Wednesday, which remains a remote learning day and reserved for cleaning. It is the only day meal delivery will happen, due to buses needed to ferry students on the other days.

• They said it: Cory Singletary, after the vote, “I work in a school in Columbus County. And if I have my numbers correct, 54 percent of the students in remote learning are failing, and 24 percent of those in in-person instruction are failing. Why don’t we just wait and focus on August?”