The Jefferson County school district is beginning a phased approach to returning students and staff to Evergreen High School this week, following the shooting that left two students hospitalized and another student, the shooter, dead.
Actual classes for students won’t start until next week, with half days, but staff are going into the building Monday through Wednesday this week to start preparing to support students. That’s according to the plan the school district published and shared to families Sunday.
The plan was shaped by several meetings with families and with student leaders last week, as well as with surveys that were sent to all students.
On Wednesday evening, the school will host an open house where parents can accompany their students to walk through the school at their own pace.
School and district leaders have said that the school only had minor changes following the shooting, including some replaced floor and carpet tiles. All doors now also have large school posters on them to cover the markings law enforcement made on them when they were clearing the school.
The school will eventually replace all the doors, the principal said, but for now, the posters are there to create uniformity so that all the markings are hidden.
On Thursday and Friday this week, students will start returning to school, but won’t have classes. Instead, they will have structured activities.
Next week, on Monday, students will resume classes with half days to start.
The district has also planned for two information sessions hosted by the National Mass Violence Center for parents. The sessions, titled “Understanding Mass Violence Impact on Children - How Parents & Caregivers can Help,” will be offered twice this week and will also be recorded and shared with parents.
The school will have a full-time school resource officer as staff and students return. The deputy, Odie Tucker, was previously one of the part-time SROs who covered the school last spring.
