Around 17% of LPS Students Opt For Learning Remotely To Start School Year

LINCOLN–(KFOR Aug. 3)–Nearly 6,800  Lincoln Public School students have opted out of in-person classroom learning for the coming year. That’s about one out of every six students in the district.

In elementary, Belmont has the largest number with 161. Irving Middle School has 211 opting out, and Lincoln High has 442. School officials have emphasized that students who opt out will still be required to attend by zoom.

Parents of any K-12 LPS student may voluntarily elect for their child to participate in remote learning during the 2020-2021 school year if LPS is conducting classes under yellow or orange on the risk dial. If the risk dial is in green, only students with an individualized plan will be allowed to participate in remote learning. After the July 31 deadline, families may contact their child’s school at any time to change their preference.

Attending school remotely means:

• During scheduled class times the student will be required to sign on to each teacher’s Zoom meeting using their LPS-issued Chromebook.
• Attendance will be taken by the teacher as if the student were physically present.
• Joining a class via Zoom requires an internet connection with a minimum dedicated bandwidth of 1.5Mbps up/1.5Mbps down per learner. If families do not have internet connectivity, they may contact their school office to inquire about the availability of cellular hotspots configured to provide access only to LPS Chromebooks.
• It is important to note students may not be on Zoom the entire class time (based on teacher instruction). Students will be required to complete work independently outside of scheduled class (Zoom-in) sessions.
• While LPS works to make remote learning a high-quality experience, there are some classes, courses and services that cannot be offered through remote learning.
• Student engagement during remote learning is the responsibility of the student and parent.
• While attending remote learning, families must continue to notify the office of any absences (illness, activity preventing attendance, etc.) for their child.
• Students participating in remote learning will still need to follow behavior expectations listed in the Lincoln Public Schools Rights and Responsibilities of Student section of the Important Information Book as if they were attending school physically.