A student waits for assistance from a Duneland Boys & Girls Club staff member on Friday.
Despite the rather unusual conditions, students remain diligent in their studies at Duneland Boys & Girls Club on Friday.
A Duneland Boys & Girls Club faculty member assists a young student with an online assignment on Friday.
Masked with a protective shield around her desk, a student at Duneland Boys & Girls Club works on an assignment Friday.
Duneland Boys & Girls Club in Chesterton provides students with an assortment of academic supplies, such as reading materials and stationery.
A sign reminding students and faculty to practice social distancing is posted in the atrium of Duneland Boys & Girls Club in Chesterton.
Students at Duneland Boys & Girls Club remain properly socially distanced, as they are given individual workspaces with a 6-foot radius.
Signs posted throughout the hallways at Chesterton's Duneland Boys & Girls Club remind students and faculty to follow health and safety protocols.
At noon on a Friday, the Hammond Boys & Girls Club is typically quiet, not a student to be seen.
However, in this new area of e-learning, the echo of teachers leading instruction from their virtual classrooms rings down the hall.
Classes are now back in session in all major Northwest Indiana schools. But with a mix of virtual, optional in-person and hybrid learning plans, thousands of Region students have yet to physically return to school, creating an unprecedented need for supervision as Indiana and Illinois economies reopen.
Students in Merrillville and Hammond aren’t expected to return to in-person learning for months, and hybrid learning plans, like in Crown Point and Duneland schools, have some parents searching for care on specific days of the week.
To meet families’ needs, community organizations like Crossroads YMCA and the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Northwest Indiana are partnering with local districts and expanding programming beyond their past models of before- and after-school care or summer-only all-day programs.
“Our business model has completely changed,” said Rose Joiner, director of operations for Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Northwest Indiana. “We want from strictly after school ... to strictly education five to six hours a day.”
A recreational room is transformed into a socially distanced work area for students at the Duneland Boys & Girls Club.
In 10 Northwest Indiana Boys & Girls Clubs locations, programs vary based on the community. At the Duneland and Cedar Lake clubs, families can register for the three days of virtual learning that match their students’ virtual learning schedule. At other clubs like East Chicago, Gary and Hammond, families can register for all five days while their districts remain in full-time virtual learning.
While staff members at the clubs do not replace teachers, the Boys & Girls Clubs are hiring staff with education experience, such as substitutes and teachers’ aides, Joiner said.
The staff serve a role similar to tutors, President and CEO Ryan Smiley said, helping keep kids on track to complete school work and identifying subject matter where students may need more help.
“We’re the kind of parent-school liaison,” Smiley said.
At Duneland, which currently has a wait list, the club’s staff-to-student ratio has decreased from 1-to-25 in past programs to 1-to-12.
Registration helps keep student cohorts small and increases the ability to social distance, as compared to a traditional classroom environment.
“It’s all about numbers,” Smiley said, standing in Duneland’s 30,000-square-foot facility, serving about 65 kids in its day program. “It’s size and scale.”
While demand is high at the Duneland club, other locations, like Hammond, have space available and are continuing to register students.
Two Crossroads YMCA locations will offer similar “Out of School Learning” programs for students in kindergarten through sixth grade beginning Sept. 8.
The Southlake YMCA will offer three days a week of care to complement Crown Point schools’ hybrid learning model.
Crossroads YMCA Out of School staff member Carolyn Thomas works with a student in the Y's out of school care and elearning assistance program as some Northwest Indiana districts reopen with hybrid and virtual learning models.
The Griffith YMCA, at its new location in the former Ready Elementary School, will offer a five-day program with morning transportation provided from Crossroads YMCA’s Hammond and Whiting locations.
The area YMCAs extended their summer programs through Sept. 4 to meet families’ needs until the organization’s Out of School Learning program begins.
“We didn’t want to not have a solution for families,” said Jill Schaffenberger, marketing director for Crossroads YMCA. “It’s a real tough predicament that’s come up. The Y’s glad to serve the community in this way and give them that peace of mind.”
Students are offered established time for e-learning, lunch and physical education in the YMCA’s Out of School Learning program.
Both YMCA and Boys & Girls Clubs staff have established curbside drop-off and pickup with temperature checks for participating students.
The Boys & Girls Clubs have established isolation rooms for students if they begin experiencing symptoms while in club care.
In the first weeks, the Boys & Girls Clubs are settling into their new model and discovering little things, like e-learning works best when every student has their own headphones.
“This is an opportunity to continue and foster relationships,” Joiner said. “This is our new business, but we want it to be impactful for a young person’s life.”
Both YMCA and Boys & Girls Clubs programs are fee-based, but assistance is available through Lake Area United Way or by contacting your local program.
For more information about Crossroads YMCA’s Out of School Learning program, see crymca.org/outofschool. For more on the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Northwest Indiana, see bgcgreaternwi.org/fallregistration.
Crown Point Community School Corp. Bulldog Back to School Plan
Where’s your school’s plan? cps.k12.in.us
Options: Hybrid learning first nine weeks.
Schedule: Students will meet in person two days a week and participate in remote learning the remainder of the week.
Masks: Required in most contexts, except when eating or in classrooms where social distancing is appropriate.
Important dates: Students' first day of school has been pushed back from Aug. 19 to Aug. 24.
Duneland School Corp. Reentry Plan
Where’s your school’s plan? duneland.k12.in.us
Options: Duneland began on a hybrid learning model. Students are expected to transition to four days a week in-person, with a full virtual option available, in October.
Schedule: In the district's hybrid model, students attend class two-to-three days a week in-person in an alphabetically determined rotation. When not meeting in-person, students will be expected to keep up with remote learning assignments. As the district shifts to in-person learning, students will attend school in person four days a week with elearning on Wednesdays.
Masks: During the pandemic, students will be required to have a mask with them at all times. Students may be allowed to remove masks in classrooms when social distancing can be maintained.
Important dates: Students' first day delayed from Aug. 12 to Aug. 25. Four days a week in-person to begin Oct. 5.
East Porter County School Corp. Return to Learn
Where’s your school’s plan? eastporter.k12.in.us
Options: On campus or elearning.
Schedule: Students on campus will follow a traditional school schedule. Remote students must attend all recorded or live instruction sessions and communicate with teachers during school hours.
Masks: Masks are recommended when riding the bus, when dropping a student off to enter the school building and where social distancing is not possible.
Important dates: Students’ first day is Aug. 12.
Gary Community School Corp. 2020-2021 School Re-Entry
Where’s your school’s plan? garycsc.k12.in.us/2020-2021-school-re-entry
Options: All virtual start to school year.
Schedule: More information to come.
Masks: Masks will be required at certain times for all students and staff.
Important dates: Students’ first day of Aug. 12 delayed to Aug. 17 following power and internet connectivity outages.
Griffith Public Schools Return to Learn
Where’s your school’s plan? griffith.k12.in.us
Options: Virtual for first four weeks. In-person instruction to continue after.
Schedule: Online learning to be provided by Griffith teachers.
Masks: Masks will be required, but may be removed where social distancing is appropriate. Face shields may also be used.
Important dates: Students' first day of instruction will begin Aug. 19, pushed back from the district's original start date of Aug. 12. In-person instruction resumes Sept. 16.
Hanover Community Schools Re-Entry Plan
Where’s your school’s plan? hanover.k12.in.us
Options: In-person or elearning.
Schedule: Five days a week of instruction. Virtual instruction will be provided by licensed Hanover teachers.
Masks: Masks are strongly encouraged where six feet of social distancing cannot be maintained and required on school buses, in restrooms and when visiting an office.
Important dates: Online registration packets will be made available to parents in late July. Students’ first day is Aug. 19.
Lake Central School Corp. Return to School
Where’s your school’s plan? lcsc.us
Options: In person or online learning.
Schedule: Five days per week for in-person instruction; minimum five hours a day for grades 1-6, and six hours for grades 7-12, if choosing elearning option.
Masks: Masks will be required anytime students and staff cannot maintain six feet of distance. They will not be required while in classrooms if students are working individually and facing the same direction.
Important dates: School board members approved a delayed start date of Aug. 17, pushed back from Aug. 12.
Lake Ridge New Tech Schools IN Class Re-Entry Plan 2020-21
Where’s your school’s plan? lakeridge.k12.in.us
Options: Remote learning for first nine weeks.
Schedule: Remote students will receive education from teachers as they would in the classroom with some live teaching sessions or recorded lessons being provided.
Masks: Staff and students will be required to have a mask with them at all times.They will be required to be worn in certain settings such as on school buses, moving throughout school buildings, and speaking to others face-to-face.
Important dates: Students' first day was delayed from Aug. 19 to Sept. 2.
LaPorte Community School Corp. Getting Back on Track
Where’s your school’s plan? www.lpcsc.k12.in.us
Options: In-person, LPCSC-led distance learning, or LPCSC Homeschool Academy.
Schedule:Distance learning will require a nine week (grades K-8) or semester-long (9-12) commitment. LPCSC Homeschool Academy is a full school year commitment.
Masks: Masks will be available for students and staff and worn as much as reasonably possible. Some students may be considered medically exempt. See full school plan for more details.
Important dates: Registration for traditional in-person, LPCSC distance learning and LPCSC Homeschool Academy is required by Aug. 5. Students' first day is Aug. 24.
Merrillville Community School Corp. Re-Entry Plan
Where’s your school’s plan? mvsc.k12.in.us
Options: Virtual learning first trimester.
Masks: Students must have a mask with them at all times. Masks can be removed at lunch or where social distancing is possible.
Important dates: Students' first day is Aug. 20.
Michigan City Area Schools Reopening 2020
Where’s your school’s plan? educateMC.net/reopening
Options: All online until fall break. In-person or one of two Michigan City online learning plans available upon building reopening on Oct. 19.
Schedule: Five days a week with daily guidance either in-person or online of instructor, or self-paced online model for students not intending to return to traditional learning in future years.
Masks: Visitors, students and staff must have masks with them at all times.
Important dates: Students’ first day is Aug. 24 with a potential return to in-person instruction based on community coronavirus positivity rates on Oct. 19.
Portage Township Schools Re-Entry Plan
Where’s your school’s plan? www.portage.k12.in.us
Options: All Portage students' learning will be virtual for the first quarter of the school year. Grades K-6 to return in-person in the second quarter. Grades 7-12 will return in hybrid with full virtual available to both sets of students.
Schedule: Grades K-6 will attend five days a week in person. Grades 7-12 will return in a hybrid model, attending either Mondays and Tuesdays or Thursdays and Fridays in person. All other days will be elearning.
Important dates: Students will begin their first day of virtual learning on Aug. 12. In-person learning to begin Oct. 20.
School City of East Chicago Protect Cardinal Plan
Where’s your school’s plan? scec.k12.in.us
Options: Virtual learning for first nine weeks. In-person or virtual instruction offered in second quarter.
Schedule: Synchronous instruction will be led for students on a daily schedule from East Chicago classrooms. Students will transition to four days a week of in-person instruction in late October. Wednesdays will be remote learning days for all students.
Masks: Required in most contexts, except when eating or in classrooms where social distancing is appropriate. Visitors, students and staff must have masks with them at all times.
Important dates: Teachers' first day is Aug. 12. Instruction begins for students on Aug. 17. Students to transition to in-person instruction beginning Oct. 26.
School City of Hammond Re-Open Plan
Where’s your school’s plan? hammond.k12.in.us
Options: Virtual learning for first semester.
Schedule: Students will be taught on a a school day schedule with attendance taken daily, with exceptions for in-person career and special education programs.
Masks: Masks must be work by everyone in common spaces such as hallways, cafeterias, washrooms and teacher work rooms.
Important dates: Students’ first day is Aug. 19.
School City of Hobart Protect Brickies Plan
Where’s your school’s plan? hobart.k12.in.us/ProtectBrickies
Options: Choice of in person or elearning.
Schedule: Five days a week of in-person instruction or virtual elearning for all students following set school day schedule.
Masks: Students and staff are required to have a mask with them at all times. Required in most contexts, except when eating or in classrooms where social distancing is appropriate.
Important dates: Students’ first day pushed back from Aug. 12 to Aug. 24.
School Town of Highland School Reopening Framework
Where’s your school’s plan? highland.k12.in.us
Options: Online instruction for first nine weeks.
Schedule: Online students will receive instruction from a school town employee via Google Classroom or another online instructional program.
Masks: Required in most contexts, except when eating or in classrooms where distancing is appropriate.
Important dates: Student registration begins online Aug. 3. Students’ first day is Aug. 12.
Valparaiso Community Schools Return to Learn
Where’s your school’s plan? valpo.k12.in.us
Options: In-person or remote learning.
Schedule: Valparaiso Community Schools reopened five days a week in person. Remote learners will be assigned classes and consistent instructors in an effort to provide education synchronous to students’ in-person peers. The districts transitions to Wednesday e-learning days beginning Sept. 23.
Masks: Face masks are recommended at all times. Masks will be required where social distancing is not possible.
Important dates: Students’ first day is Aug. 12. Once-a-week e-learning days will take place every Wednesday from Sept. 23 to Dec. 9.
Carley Lanich
Education Reporter
I cover all things K-12 and higher education throughout the Region. I come to Northwest Indiana via Indianapolis and studied journalism at the IU Media School in Bloomington.
