Facing uncertain fall, schools trying to keep plans flexible
— Administrators in
Manchester, Mo. the Parkway school district in suburban St. Louis spent the summer break crafting a flexible reopening plan, with options that include full-time classroom learning, full-time online instruction and a hybrid system.
It’s a good thing because the dangers of the coronavirus are still so uncertain that district officials are reluctant to make predictions about the fall semester, which begins in only five weeks. Confirmed coronavirus infections in Missouri’s hardest-hit city waned in June, but they are now spiking, along with hospitalizations. Schools plan to resume classes Aug. 24.
“If you had asked me even two weeks ago, ‘Do you think we would be able to come back?’ I would have said, ‘Yeah,’” Assistant Superintendent Kevin Beckner said. “Today my answer is ‘I’m not sure,’ just because of how the situation has changed so quickly.”
Schools around the U.S. face the same dilemma. With the number of reported COVID-19 cases and deaths still rising, districts must grapple with whether to bring students back to classrooms, and how to keep pupils and teachers safe if they do.
Pressure is mounting in many areas to reopen classrooms. President Donald Trump has urged schools to bring children back to class in the fall and has threatened to cut off federal funding if they do not.
“Young people have to go to school, and there’s problems when you don’t go to school, too,” Trump said in an interview aired Sunday on Fox News. “And there’s going to be a funding problem because we’re not going to fund when they don’t open their schools.”
The Republican president blamed Democrats for the push to keep some states and schools closed.
“We got hit with the virus — shouldn’t have happened — and we had to close up. We saved millions of lives,” Trump said. “Now we’ve opened it up, got to go back to school.”
The Parkway district today is scheduled to announce its plans for the fall, but it will stay ready to pivot quickly if the spread worsens or the outlook improves, Beckner said.
“Even if we are able to bring back all of our students, it won’t look the same as it was in February,” Beckner said. “There will be more hand-washing. There will be more restrictions on how we’re able to do things like lunch, like recess.”
Signs will encourage social distancing, and desks will be spaced farther apart. Face coverings will be required for all students, instructors and staff. Some teachers will wear masks with clear coverings so students who are deaf or heard of hearing can follow what they are saying.