Dallastown Area School District’s superintendent is pushing for the district to move to full virtual learning and cancel fall athletics for the upcoming school year in response to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

In a letter addressed to Dallastown parents and staff on Wednesday, Superintendent Joshua Doll said he recommends virtual learning for all students through Dec. 4.

Doll’s recommendation was posted on the agenda for the district’s school board meeting, happening on Thursday.

More: Dallastown band students told to self-quarantine after possible COVID-19 exposure

Doll said he plans to present his proposal at the meeting. 

“I fully recognize the impacts of this polarizing topic and no longer believe that the guidelines and mandates are practicable for a district of 6,415 students,” Doll said in his letter. “It is with a heavy heart that I will be making the following recommendation to our board of school directors.”

In his letter, Doll cited new state guidelines for schools reopening, including offering either a blended learning model or fully remote learning model and requiring all students to wear face masks while at school.

School districts have wrangled with whether or not to move learning to a virtual space for months. In March, when the coronavirus outbreak started, school districts took measures to close schools and finish the spring semester virtually.

Tuesday, the state Department of Health ordered a 14-day quarantine for 105 Dallastown Area High School band camp students and eight staff members as a result of close contact with a person who has a “probable case” of COVID-19, according to Doll’s letter.

Dallastown’s next board meeting is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Thursday, hosted virtually via Zoom. The link to join can be found at www.dallastown.net.

— Reach Tina Locurto at tlocurto@yorkdispatch.com or on Twitter at @tina_locurto.

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