Anchor Bay shifts to virtual reopening
Board to reevaluate Oct. 2
Students in the Anchor Bay School District will not begin the 2020-2021 school year in the classroom. Instead, students will start the year virtually.
School board members Aug. 19 voted 5-2 to begin the school year virtually with plans to reevaluate on Oct. 2. The district will give parents “ample notice” as to if and when students will be brought back to school buildings for in-person instruction, officials said.
“Throwing this down the road isn’t going to help because every week in this pandemic there is new information, new sources, new everything,” newly elected board Treasurer Lisa Birkmeier said before the vote. “So, yes, you can re evaluate month tomonth, but at some point, you have to make a choice. And it’s not easy, but it needs to be done.”
The motion to shift the board’s previous decision to offer both in-person and virtual learning options to going fully virtual was supported by newly elected school board Secretary Steve Mittelstadt, Trustee Jon De Roo, board Vice President Janine Ac ci vat ti Hen der shot, Trustee Marie De- Witte and Trustee Mike Moses. Birk meier and newly elected board President Patrick Green voted against it.
“There’s no win-win situation,” Hendershot said. “We’re just trying to make the best decisions.”
Prior to the vote at the board’s Aug. 19 meeting, several Anchor Bay teachers expressed their concerns about starting the school year with in-person instruction. Here’s what some of the teachers who spoke had to say. Comments have been edited for length.
• “I’ve been an Anchor Bay elementary teacher for the past 17 years,” Libby Fortune said. “My first concern is safety for all. Administrators have said social distancing will not be able to happen. The lack of social distancing puts us all at high risk of catching COVID since were confined to a classroom for hours every day. Parents, children and staff — we really need detailed, clear, organized and safe protocols in place before the first day of school.”
• “I’m here speaking as both an Anchor Bay teacher
of 15 years and a parent in our district,” Laurie Smith said. “I desperately want to be back in my classroom with my students to the point I’m almost in tears, but I want to come back when it’s safe. Our highest priority has to be the safety of students and staff. Great efforts have been made so far, but are we all truly confident that the issues can all be properly addressed by Sept. 8?”
• “Teaching in the classroom every day is already way beyond a full-time job,” Colleen Prokop said. “I found teaching remotely also way beyond a full time job, and now I’m given the responsibility of doing both at the same time, and in some cases, simultaneously.”
• “Even with my 15 years of experience there are not enough hours in the day for me to pull this off successfully, nor do I have the equipment in my classroom,” Debbie Lawrence said. “Many teachers are more than willing to go back face-to-face with clear, organized and enforced safety protocols. I am very concerned that we’re being set up for failure.”
• “How am I going to feel safe returning, as a teacher, when the director stated there would be no social distancing?” Natalie Johnston asked. “I’m one of the district’s (early childhood special education) teachers. I love each of my students as they were my own. Their safety, as well as my family’s, is a top priority.”
• “We want to be in the
classroom, but we don’t see that this can be a successful learning environment,” Kellie Roberts said. “Kindergarten students have not been to elementary school before and are not familiar with school routines. They are not independent. We will not be able to social distance and attend to their needs. Students of this age will have difficulty staying in their seat for prolonged periods of time. We do not want to create an environment that will cause these children great stress. Children in kindergarten have needs that will require careful consideration.”
• “What the district is presenting to our Anchor Bay community of teaching both models virtually through Schoology and face- to- face simultaneously is not possible at the elementary, or more specifically, the lower elementary level,” Sarah Hurley said. “Schoology is nothing more than a file folder until we, the teachers, put in those hundreds and hundreds of necessary hours behind the scenes.”
• “Teachers are being asked to social distance while at school, which means a 6-foot distance from students,” Jeanne Schoening said. “It will be an ongoing struggle. Teachers will not be able to have group work. Students will need to stay at their desks all day. The list goes on and on about the concerns I have. As a teacher I understand the importance of face-to-face learning, but safety needs to come first.”