Iowa governor moves to punish defiant district
DES MOINES, Iowa — Students in Iowa’s largest school system are facing the possibility that this most unusual school year could stretch into next summer, and the district could be hit with crippling bills because of a dispute with the governor over the safety of returning to classrooms during the coronavirus pandemic.
Des Moines school officials have repeatedly refused to abide by Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds’ order requiring the state’s 327 school districts to hold at least half their classes inperson rather than online. For Des Moines, it’s a question of trying to keep its more than 33,000 students and 5,000 staffers from contracting the disease. But after the school board last week again voted to violate Reynolds’ order, the governor called the action “unacceptable” and began the process for punishing the district.
Reynolds has dismissed Des Moines’ officials’ concerns, noting that nearly all other Iowa districts have reopened their classrooms despite some virus outbreaks and the occasional need to quarantine students, saying, “Where there’s a will, there’s a way.”
Des Moines has had one of the nation’s highest rates of people testing positive for COVID-19, and school board members ask how it would be possible to enforce social distancing rules in their crowded classrooms and packed school buses.
The school board delayed the start of school by a week as the district sought a court injunction to block the governor’s order, arguing that she had overstepped her authority. A judge initially sided with the governor, but the district proceeded with its plan to distribute thousands of laptops to students and launched a completely online course offering on Sept. 8.
District officials have said they’re deeply troubled to be out of compliance with state standards, but they believe the governor has put them in a no-win situation by ordering students to spend at least half their time in classroom. Reynolds’ order does allow waivers allowing online-only instruction, but only for districts where more than 15 percent of people test positive for the virus, which is triple the 5 percent positivity rate that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other health experts say would be appropriate for resuming in-person classes.
The district notes that 31 percent of its staff members have health concerns that put them at higher risk from COVID-19 and 10 percent are older than 60. If forced to resume classes, officials contend that many teachers and bus drivers would quit rather than risk being infected by the virus.
The positivity rate in Polk County, where most of Des Moines is located, reached 12 percent earlier in September but recently dropped to about 7 percent.
“Except for our state Department of Public Health, every other health expert we talk to doesn’t understand why we’re even having to have this fight because they recognize it isn’t safe for us to reopen our schools,” said Des Moines Superintendent Tom Ahart. “It feels like operating in an alternate reality.”
If they find the district is out of compliance, state officials could take a variety of actions, including requiring the district to keep students in classes until the end of June — nearly a month later than usual. A district official said each additional day would cost about $1.5 million, draining the district’s reserves within days.