Bay City Public Schools switch back to remote learning until January

BAY CITY, Mich. (WJRT) - Less than a month after reopening to in-person learning, Bay City Public Schools will be switching back to entirely online learning this week.

About 80% of the district’s 7,000 students will be in class on Monday and Tuesday so they can transition to remote learning beginning Wednesday. The remaining 20% of students opted out of in-person learning and have been learning at home since the school year started.

Bay City Superintendent Steve Bigelow said the decision to switch back to online learning comes as COVID-19 cases mount around the Great Lakes Bay Region. He pointed out that 11% of coronavirus diagnostic tests in Bay County have come back positive recently.

Bigelow hopes to welcome Bay City students back for in-person learning when the second semester begins on Jan. 19.

Bay City schools started the year entirely remote in September. The district began a transition plan in early October, allowing students in younger grades to learn at school while high school students returned on Oct. 19.