KANSAS CITY, Kan. — Kansas City, Kansas, Public Schools plan to have students back in class Thursday.
The district had to close schools Tuesday and Wednesday after having thousands of students absent Friday and hundreds of staff.
Spokesperson Edwin Birch said the district had about 6,000 of its 21,000 students absent Friday and about 600 staff members. He said the district cannot attribute COVID-19 to all of the absences considering other illnesses, and it was the Friday before a holiday weekend.
Birch said the decision to close was not one the district made lightly.
"For us, the top priority is the safety of our staff and of our students, and we don't want to keep classes open if we have too many absences and we are not able to manage the students in the classrooms when the numbers are low," Birch said.
The district will re-open Thursday. Spokesperson Sharita Hutton told KSHB 41 News the district will have about 500 staff absences.
Birch said the district recognizes closing unexpectedly can make things challenging for families. Any time this happens, the district provides grab and go meals for families to pick up at F.L. Schlagle High School during lunch hours from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
For parents like Bettye Berry, who has six kids at home, it's a weight off her shoulders.
"It means a lot, it really does, because it helps us provide food for them," Berry said.
Berry said the unexpected closures aren't ideal, but she understands the district's reasoning.
"It puts a burden on parents when they are not in school," Berry said.
With how unpredictable things are currently with staffing shortages, COVID-19 and other illnesses, it may not be the last time the district has to close schools.
"These are challenging times for us all, and the decision may come where we may have to close school, but we want to give them a heads up so that they can prepare," Birch said.
The two days schools were closed this week will count as two of the district's five snow days that do not have to be made up. Any days past the five will be added on to the year.
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