Hurricane Irma: Collier schools to open Monday; 11 school days lost

Collier County Public Schools announced Wednesday that all 54 district schools have power and will be open for business Monday.

Teachers are scheduled to return Friday.

The district's earliest reopening date was pushed from Wednesday, Sept. 20, to Monday, Sept. 25, after the district cited concerns about sewage backups and power outages.

More:Hurricane Irma: Collier County schools rescheduled to reopen Sept. 25

More:Hurricane Irma: Some Collier private schools to reopen this week

More:Hurricanes drove millions of students from school

The school district is offering free breakfast and lunch through Oct. 20.

In an email sent to parents Wednesday, the district wrote: “In the 10 days since the storm passed, teams of custodians and outside contractors cleaned, disinfected, and sanitized all schools. Schools and classrooms will be clean and ready for students to return.”

District Superintendent Kamela Patton said damage to schools has been minor, citing leaking roofs and missing tiles. The Naples Daily News has not been permitted to enter school buildings to view damage, but a Daily News reporter noticed a scoreboard at Gulf Coast High School ripped apart and a flooded field at Barron Collier. 

Twenty-seven district schools were used to shelter 17,000 people during and after the hurricane. In a Sept. 14 interview, Patton said she plans to submit expenses to FEMA and apply for county grants. 

"We're going to try and make sure we capture every last dollar," she said. 

Patton assured CCPS will provide transportation to students who remain in shelters once school begins. 

Come Monday, public school students in Collier and Lee counties will have lost 11 days of school due to Hurricane Irma. Lee school officials last week announced they were reopening their classrooms this Monday. 

School Board members will vote on a revised academic calendar at a Tuesday, Sept. 26, board meeting.

The school district used their single hurricane day in August when heavy flooding prevented students from safely accessing school roads. Patton said she plans to ask the Florida State Department of Education to waive some of the missed days.

Patton said the district is also looking to extend early release days and hold classes the day before and after holidays. She’s hoping to hold all makeup days in the first semester.  

More:School closed? These places in Lee and Collier will take your kids

More:50 ways to entertain your kids during a power outage