Harnett County students will be back in the classroom at the end of September

But students won't be completely done with online learning. The Harnett County Schools Board of Education decided that schools would return to classes on a modified schedule starting Sept. 28. That means one group of students will go to school for half the week, while the other group goes to school for the other half of the week.

When students aren't in the classroom, they will be learning online.

Students will attend school on an A/B schedule. One group of students will go to class in the "A" group, another group will be in the "B" group. "A students" will go to school Monday and Tuesday, while "B students" will go to school Thursday and Friday.

Each Wednesday, schools will undergo "deep cleaning" to limit the spread of coronavirus on campus and students will learn online.

Harnett teachers test positive for coronavirus days before classes resume

"We know that when we return to school we will probably have some positive cases," said Superintendent Aaron Fleming. "We have a procedure and a protocol for that ... that we follow."

Fleming said in a Facebook video that the school system is doing everything it can to limit the spread of coronavirus and opening campuses slowly and thoughtfully.

Harnett County Schools' families have the choice to learn online if in-person learning option is not right for them. They can also switch to in-person learning if they have decided online learning is not the right option for them.

Fleming said that a survey done by the school system showed half of the school system's staff and families said school should be online, while the other half said that school should be taught in person.

In the board's reopening plan, in-person instruction for five days a week is scheduled to resume on October 26. The board's plan says this will only happen if Gov. Roy Cooper lifts restrictions on the state and moves into Phase 3 of reopening.

On first day of classes, Harnett County Schools extends online learning for several more weeks