SMITHFIELD — Most Johnston students will remain in remote-only learning until Feb. 1, when they will return to their classrooms two days a week.

Only pre-kindergarten students and exceptional children in self-contained classrooms will return to their brick-and-mortar schools on Jan. 19. In December, the Johnston County Board of Education had abandoned all in-person learning until at least that date.

Other Johnston students — those in grades K-12 — will return to their schools on Feb. 1 under what the state calls Plan B. That limits a school’s capacity to 50% and requires social distancing in classrooms and other school settings.

Assuming the schools follow the same Plan B they did in the fall, that means half of students will be in their classroom on Mondays and Tuesdays, the other half on Thursdays and Fridays. Students will learning remotely on the days they aren't on campus.

Johnston students in grades 6-12 had been in Plan B from late October until the schools abandoned in-person learning in early December. Students in grades K-5 had been under Plan A, which allowed schools to open without capacity limits.

Tuesday’s night vote was 4-3, with board members Lyn Andrews, Ronald Johnson, Todd Sutton and Mike Wooten voting for Plan B starting Feb. 1.

Earlier, school board member Kay Carroll had made a motion to remain remote only through mid-March, but only board members Terri Sessoms and Tracie Zukowski joined him in support of that motion.