Vestavia school board gives update on reopening plan

The Vestavia School Board had a called meeting on July 31 to discuss an update on the school reopening plan.

A message with the information was also sent out to parents and students via email from Superintendent Todd Freeman. 

The start of school has been moved to Aug. 20. Teachers will go back on Aug. 7 to give them time to more effectively prepare for students to return to campus. The deadline for paying student fees has also been extended to Aug. 10. 

“Vestavia Hills City Schools is updating its reopening plan based on recent guidance from the CDC and Governor Ivey’s amended health order,” the letter from Freeman said. “We are also considering the recent recommendations from the Jefferson County Department of Health while awaiting guidance from the Alabama Department of Public Health scheduled to be released next week.” 

VHCS will continue to offer traditional and remote learning options for students. Traditional Model students in Pre-K through 5th grade will attend school on site, every day of the school week. Traditional Model students in grades 6-12, will have an alternating schedule to reduce the number of students on campus each day. The details on that are being finalized and will be shared next week. 

As of July 30, 1,270 students (or 18%) had registered for remote learning. The deadline to register is set for Aug. 4. 

The Board also approved several changes in administrative roles. Dr. Tyler Burgess will serve as principal for the PreK-12 Remote Learning Model; Tonya Rozell will become principal at Vestavia Hills High School and the VHHS Freshman Campus; Bill Mann will join the VHHS administrative team as assistant principal and Roger Dobnikar will serve as interim principal at Liberty Park Middle School along with assistant principal Lauren Dressback.

“My responsibility is to look at our school system and the best way to position our team,” Freeman said. “We have 7,147 kids that I  want to make sure have the best experience. We need to put our leadership in places that they can best serve the entire system.” 

The VHBOE will have another called meeting on Wednesday, Aug. 5. It will be streamed live at https://www.vestavia.k12.al.us/boelivestream