The Pittsfield Public Schools will be using an A.M.-P.M. hybrid model this fall.

Students will attend school every day for two and a half hours, either in the morning or the afternoon.

Pittsfield School Committee Chair Katherine Yon said, “You’re right back into that classroom the next morning, and so you get that immediate reinforcement, and frankly, as a former teacher, I think that’s a crucial piece to this.”

Yon says they chose the plan because it allows for a deep cleaning of the schools every day and there will be no in-school meals.

For parents not comfortable sending their kids into the building, a fully remote option will be available.

Yon said, “We’re hoping that it would probably take 1,000 to 1,200 students, and we can pair that up with teachers who might have to teach remotely because of medical issues and so on.”

Adding to the difficulty of this unique school year is the loss of superintendent Jason McCandless, who is taking the Superintendent job at Mount Greylock.

At its meeting this week, the school committee voted to enforce a clause in McCandless’ contract keeping him with Pittsfield for 90 days following his resignation.

Yon said, “Because of the pandemic, because the situation is so unique, we should enforce that sort of safety net for our kids, and keep someone who has been such a proven, trusted leader on board.”

While he’s excited to join Mount Greylock, McCandless says he’s fully committed to finishing out the next three months in Pittsfield.

McCandless said, “I certainly owe it to this community, which has been wonderful to me and is home, to finish for as long as they need me and to finish as strong as is humanly possible.”