ADAMS TWP — Members of Mars Area School Board are laying out plans for students to return to school in the fall, although no concrete options have been established.

“These are tough times,” said Mark Gross, the newly appointed superintendent. “We know that we have to find a way to educate children (with the) powers that we have.”

Gross on Tuesday evening briefly discussed the process to establish the district's health and safety plan, as required by the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE).

The state has directed schools to begin “phased reopenings” based on the color of the county. For counties that have gone green, schools are permitted to offer in-person instruction after developing a written health and safety plan.

Plans need to be approved by school boards and then posted on district websites.

In June, assistant superintendent Elizabeth McMahon said Mars Area is monitoring a number of entities as it prepares to make a plan. Among these are the PDE, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and neighboring districts.

Gross said before his July 1 arrival at the district, a committee was formed to weigh Mars Area's needs. The committee aims to include district personnel, members of the school board and district parents.

“It's a pretty arduous task to try to figure out where we are,” Gross said. “We have been able to have three meetings.”

The first meeting was about establishing a process, according to Gross. The second tried to diversify input from district personnel. The third meeting was focused on including representatives from district families.

“We're trying to layer this,” Gross said. “So as we're moving, we try to get more folks on this train.”

At this time, the district has identified three paths for the return to school. First, students will return to a traditional class setting with “building-specific protocols.” Second, students will attend via livestream or a similar simultaneous virtual structure. Third, students can enroll in Mars Cyber Academy.

Gross said if a student is exposed to COVID-19, the district hopes to have tools in place for students to easily move into virtual attendance for quarantine before returning to a traditional setting.

Gross told the public if they ask specific questions, he may provide vague answers due to the situation being one that frequently changes.

“I will not say something that I can't deliver,” Gross said. “Those specifics will start becoming clearer and clearer.”

Gross said no matter how the district decides to open, it must develop better infrastructure than was used in the spring when school went virtual. Gross said the district plans to make technology purchases for next year that better prepare district classrooms.

“We aren't finished yet,” Gross said. “We don't want to go too quick (and) put something out there while things change.”

The next major step in the planning process is issuing a survey to district families asking in detail how they intend to have their children educated. Answering this survey is “critical” to the district's planning, board member Christine Valenta said.

Following the survey, officials will begin looking at building-specific resources. The return-to-school committee will reconvene to see if the district is ready to release the resulting plan. Officials aren't expecting to get that far before August, Gross said.

He added that parents w the district's planning process is in “real time.”

Responding to a comment from a visitor, board member Megan Lenz said the district is taking its time in planning for next year because doing otherwise could be detrimental.

She said as a paramedic, she, too, is learning to be “comfortable being uncomfortable” with the demands of the pandemic.

Gross said he's aware one of the biggest things that needs to be planned is social distancing on buses. Although he didn't specify any procedures, Gross encouraged parents to consider transporting their students if they're able to.

Tuesday was the first time Gross sat at a board meeting as superintendent. John Kennedy, school board president, said many people will expect Gross to be “Superman” and fix everything during his first day on the job.

“He's been here for seven days,” Kennedy said. “And he's fixed a lot of stuff already.”

“If you're looking for an 'S' on the chest, nobody has it,” Gross said. “We're only as good as the people around us.”

The board approved a band health and safety plan Tuesday night. An athletic plan was approved in June. Details about the district's overall health and safety plan will be released as they become available.

“We have to be flexible,” Gross said.