With COVID-19 cases trending up throughout Jefferson County, Quilcene School District will be going back to remote learning starting next Monday.

In a letter sent out to district families Nov. 18, Quilcene Principal Sean Moss said administrators for the K-12 school would reevaluate the need for remote learning in mid-January.

"Over the course of the next several days we will be communicating regularly through our website, Facebook page, Class Dojo, and Remind on items that include continued weekday meal deliveries, material deliveries, and what education will look like beginning the week after next," Moss said in his letter.

Moss also cited several factors as influential in the decision, including the fact that Jefferson County is seeing the start of community spread of the disease; rising numbers of COVID cases; and the fact that until recently, cases occurred within households and seemed to only be a "blip" rather than the current trend.

The principal said that while staff hoped it wouldn't be necessary, they have been actively preparing for the eventual return of remote learning.

Because of this, Moss said the return "won't be a mirror image of last March."

"Some of the big changes you'll notice will be in teacher's abilities to leverage video and other technologies to increase student engagement," Moss said in the letter. "Our ability to bring students back on-campus is completely dependent upon our vigilance in reducing the spread of COVID-19."

"As a community, we can do this,” he added.