Educational leaders discuss challenges of reopening schools

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Superintendents from the Oceanside, East Rockaway and Baldwin school districts spoke in a virtual forum Aug. 4 about obstacles to opening schools in September.

They addressed a Zoom call of more than 150 participants, which was convened by Assemblywoman Judy Griffin, of Assembly District 21. Roger Tilles, a Regent of the New York State Department of Education’s 10th judicial district, also spoke on the call. 

Board of Education members from the Rockville Centre and Lynbrook school districts, as well as parents from the Special Education Parents Teachers’ Association (PTA) shared their experiences with crafting reopening plans, too.

“Everyone can agree we all want to send our children back to school safely,” Griffin said, “but that is quite complicated because there's a lot that goes into it.”

The morning’s speakers confirmed that there are a multitude of aspects to consider when creating this year’s back-to-school plans. Districts have been forming alternate schedules and protocols since June; however, they could not fine-tune specifics until the state released its set of guidelines on July 13.

Each district then had about two weeks to submit a finalized plan to the state by July 31. Districts were required to have all stakeholders participate in creating these plans, including teachers, faculty, administrators, parents and Board of Education members. 

Many districts assembled task forces of more than 100 members to dissect the state’s 145-page guideline document and, from that, formulate tailored plans for their own district. There is also a 23-page master guidance document from the New York State Department of Health regarding health and safety protocols for opening schools.

“We were given a monumental task,” said Lisa Ruiz, superintendent of East Rockaway School District. “We really want the best and safest reopening for the community. I'm really proud of the work that we’ve done but obviously there are still a lot of questions that remain.”

Ruiz noted that one of the biggest considerations for a district’s reopening plan is the amount of building space it has for students, faculty and teachers to social distance six feet apart. This explains why some districts can welcome students back to their classrooms every day of the week and some cannot. Those that cannot have created different versions of a hybrid model, where students attend school some days and learn from home on others.

Another consideration, then, is availability of technology for students learning remotely. To make learning equitable, districts are trying to purchase Chromebooks, for example, for all students — all at once.

“There are backorders on devices,” Ruiz said, “so districts that are trying to get up to speed are having difficulty doing that because devices may not be delivered by September.

“Our budgets did not include Covid costs,” she added. “We were closed for a while, and there were some expenses schools did not have, but these Covid-related expenses are significant.”

Dr. Shari Camhi, superintendent of Baldwin School District, spoke more about the distinctions between the three teaching models schools had to prepare: in-person, remote and hybrid. “Full, in-person is only possible when you have enough space to physically distance,” she stressed.

Camhi also advocated for a waiver of the rule mandating 180 school days in order to allow teachers to attend more professional development trainings, as well as a waiver for annual testing in grades three through eight this year.

“We are not trying to fit the old-school learning system in a Zoom box,” she said. “We are trying to reinvent it.”

Dr. Phyllis Harrington, superintendent of Oceanside School District, then spoke about health and safety measures. She said schools are working with the county and state’s departments of health to create “a crystal clear protocol” if a Covid-19 case is confirmed in a school during the school year.

She also noted that there will be “high expectations and requirements for all” regarding the wearing of face coverings and adhering to social distancing.

“We want our kids in our school buildings,” she said. “That’s our lives’ work. But we want it where we can keep them healthy and we can keep them safe, and we do have plans in place to try to do that.”

Gov. Andrew Cuomo is expected to make an announcement this week officially determining whether schools can reopen in September.