(KAIR)--After being away for nearly five months, students are to return to the classroom Thursday at USD 377 Atchison County Community Schools.

In accordance with local and state regulations, School Superintendent Dr. Andrew Gaddis says that all students, including pre-school, will be required to wear masks when physical distancing is not possible.

“We are requiring masks. That being said, when you have coordinated physical activities – such as P.E., recess, eating lunch – they won’t have to wear one. If they’re in a class setting and receiving direct instruction, where students can all be sufficiently spaced, and the teacher can be sufficiently spaced, they don’t have to wear a mask. That’ll be a few different classes, not across the board. We also have been working with all of the teachers to create protective barriers between the students so that when they have to sit a little closer than other times – if they have to take their mask off – they have a second layer of protection by them.”

Gaddis says the district will continue to have regular meetings with county health officials to determine if any adjustments need to be made to the school setting.

Regarding sports and other activities, Gaddis says there will be attendance restrictions.

“We have limitations of 45 family cohorts in an indoor event, so when you’ve got a volleyball triangular going on, that 45-family cohort has to be divided among three teams – so there’s a lot of those things. We have to continue the conversations and make adjustments as we go.”

Gaddis says this year’s student enrollment will likely be around 490 to 500, about the same as last year.

He adds that about 5 percent of students have opted for the remote-learning option offered by the district.