Back to school: Several Bay County schools are now scheduled to reopen Nov. 5, according to district officials. All district schools have been closed since Hurricane Michael made landfall in the county Oct. 10. At least one will operate under a split schedule and two others will include students displaced from other schools. The rest of the schools are expected to open no later than the week of Nov. 12. Superintendent Bill Husfelt says district officials are working with the Florida Department of Education on an adjusted schedule for the rest of the school year that they hope to announce this week. WMBB. WJHG. Jackson County students return to school today. Tallahassee Democrat. Donations are pouring in for Bay County students. Panama City News Herald. Arnold High School will be used as a long-term shelter for displaced Bay County residents. Panama City News Herald. A private school in Bay County, Holy Nativity Episcopal School, resumes classes today. Panama City News Herald. Students from counties affected by the hurricane who started attending schools in nearby counties will have to return to their schools when they reopen unless they had a "complete family move." WTXL. The Indian River County and Charlotte County school districts donate books and other school supplies to Panhandle schools affected by the hurricane. WPTV. Charlotte Sun.

Teachers trying to recover: Like students, teachers in the Florida Panhandle are struggling to regain a sense of normalcy after the devastation caused by Hurricane Michael. “I don’t have a home, so how can I be effective at my work when I can’t shower or cook food?” asks Denise Hinson, who teaches 7th-graders language arts at New Horizons Learning Center. “Maybe I will live at the school? I don’t have anything else to do.” Bay County School District spokeswoman Sharon Michalik says the district is meeting with community leaders to find housing options for teachers. “We have a delicate balance between the humanitarian needs and the need to open schools in order to show our community that normal will exist again,” she says. “We have teachers who have lost everything and they are camping out in their classrooms. We’ll have to find them somewhere else to live.” Associated Press. (more…)