CHARLOTTE, N.C. — On Monday, thousands of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools students and teachers will be returning to the classroom. Only some students will start this coming week and it comes after new guidance from the CDC.
"Our community health metrics have improved considerably over the last month, and that is the result our entire community doing their part," CMS Superintendent Earnest Winston said.
CMS K-5 students head back to the classroom on Feb. 15 and it will be welcomed by some parents.
"Now is the time to do the right thing to get our kids back in school," Melisa Klink, CMS parent said.
"I miss the days when teachers only had to beg for pencils, books, and a livable wage. Now we must beg for our lives," Meredith fox, CMS teacher said.
Meanwhile, kindergartner Damian Delacruz is getting ready to head back to school.
"We're starting to feel comfortable about it, my son has been remote this entire time, so all six months," CMS Parent, Jennifer Delacruz said.
At first, Delacruz felt uneasy about sending her son back to the classroom. Now, she's ready, planning to take her own safety measures.
"It's two days and where going to take precautions as soon as he comes home you know kind of a strip down straight to the shower, hand wash, and I trust my school too," Delacruz said.
Students will now have to fill out a symptom screener form everyday before class starts. Families are encouraged to fill it out online, but school staff will have forms available.
As for bus riders, there is a special bus form that needs to be filled out weekly.
Temperatures will be checked before walking into school and face masks are required.
"It's just part of new routines, that we've all kind of had to adjust right so what's one more thing to do," Delacruz said.
The CDC has laid out a color-coded system.
In blue or yellow areas of the country where transmission is low, schools are encouraged to reopen fully in person.
Orange areas with slightly higher transmission urged to adopt a hybrid model
Even in red zones where transmission rates are higher than 10% of students and staff are tested regularly, schools are encouraged to do some in-person learning with reduced attendance.
If there is no regular testing, elementary schools should be hybrid while middle and high school students should stay virtual.
"We won't be able to eliminate all risks. That's impossible," CMS Superintendent Earnest Winston said.
As of Saturday, CMS is in the CDC's red zone and has decided to go with a hybrid plan for elementary students, but they'll also do a hybrid plan for middle and high school starting Feb. 22 -- going against the CDC guidance.
It's a controversial choice in and out of the classroom.
The CDC also saying teachers should be vaccinated as soon as possible. It's not a requirement to reopen schools, but it's something teachers have been fighting for.
"I've gone this far without getting COVID so I hope I can make it another month or however long it's going to be until the vaccine," CMS teacher, Justin Parmenter said.
School leaders also encourage parents to keep their kids home if they feel sick.