Lansing Sun

The Michigan Legislature is planning to have health departments and school districts work together on setting the best standards for reopening schools for in-person learning with the "Return to Learn" plan, according to the Michigan House Republicans website.

“Local health experts are the people we should be looking to for guidance on the best way to keep our kids healthy as they return to school this fall,” Rep. Graham Filler (R-DeWitt) said, according to Michigan House Republicans. “Under this plan, local school districts will have the flexibility to put practices in place that are best for their students and their communities.”

With this plan, schools would be able to implement flexible schedules that would allow them to start in-person learning quickly while staying safe. The plan would also let school districts pick their own start date, which could potentially be before or after Labor Day. 

The plan will also provide an $800-per-student payment, which would help with distance learning and safety measures, and $500 per teacher, which would go toward overtime pay and transitioning costs. Intermediate school districts will also receive $80 million to help with coordinating and implementing distance learning. 

The "Return to Learn" plan would change rules so that being marked "present" doesn't mean a student has to physically be in a classroom, which would allow for hybrid plans for learning. "Attendance" will now mean "engaged in instruction," according to the Michigan House Republicans website.

Snow days would also be limited to help provide more safe remote instruction, when in-person learning isn't deemed safe. 

Benchmark assessments will be used to inform teachers and parents where a student is struggling, so that they can be provided additional help in those areas and not fall behind during remote learning. 

The plan includes ways for school districts to implement safety protocols and requirements as well, especially concerning extracurricular activities and sports.