Despite state order, Miami-Dade will not reopen schools until county enters Phase 2

Miami-Dade County Public Schools won’t be able to reopen schools, as a new state order calls for, if the county is still in its Phase 1 reopening stage, which county leaders are tightening due to a surge of COVID-19 cases, Miami-Dade Schools Superintendent Alberto Carvalho said Tuesday.

If conditions continue on the same upward trajectory — Florida’s confirmed COVID-19 cases have doubled in the past two weeks to more than 213,000 — Carvalho said in an interview with the Herald that he did not foresee MDCPS “being able to resume schooling in a traditional way.”

If the county is still in Phase 1 by the start of school Aug. 24, as it is now, schooling would be held entirely online.

Florida sees more than 7,000 new coronavirus cases as Miami-Dade total hits 51,000

On July 1, the Miami-Dade School Board unanimously approved a plan that calls for Miami-Dade Public Schools to pivot among in-person, online and hybrid courses, contingent on the county being in Phase 2 of its reopening plan. The plan also calls for staggered schedules, smaller classes and mandatory masks for all.

South Florida, the epicenter of Florida COVID-19 cases, continues to be a Phase 1 outlier in a Phase 2 state. Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez announced a new emergency order, now expected to go into effect Thursday, that restricts restaurants to delivery, takeout or outdoor dining. The order had called for gyms to close, but Gimenez backpedaled on that Tuesday.

Gimenez adopted the measures to try to counter the exploding number of cases in Miami-Dade. The Florida Department of Health reported 2,066 more COVID-19 cases in Miami-Dade on Tuesday out of 7,347 statewide, bringing the county’s total confirmed cases to 51,058.

Carvalho pointed to the summer resurgence of COVID-19, when many experts predicted hotter summer months would lead to a decline in cases.

“That shows how little we know about this virus and how poorly we really understand social and human behavior,” Carvalho said.

Locally elected school boards, not the state, ultimately decide whether to open or close school. Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach school districts shuttered schools March 13 ahead of any state guidance.

On Monday, Florida Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran ordered public schools to reopen in August. While the emergency order allowed for distance learning, it also stipulated that all public schools would be required to reopen for at least five days a week and to provide the full array of services required by law, including in-person instruction and services for students with special needs.

Carvalho said his staff tuned into a state webinar Tuesday that further explained the education commissioner’s order. The order allows for district flexibility and will fully fund school districts with “innovative learning environments.”

“I don’t necessarily at this point believe that it endangers all of the options that we proffered and were unanimously approved by the board,” he said. “We believe that we can work within the guidelines as provided in the emergency order.”

The school district began surveying parents Monday on their preferences of in-school learning or online distance learning. Carvalho said as of Tuesday, 25,000 parents had responded online. He said an excess of two-thirds of parents opted for in-school learning and one-third opted out.

Those responses have to be broken down by school to determine how schools would work under Phase 2.

If at least 25% of a school’s student body opts for online learning, those who wish to go to school in-person may do so five days a week.

If fewer than 25% of students opt out, then the school will have to conduct a mix of online and in-person learning, alternating between half of the school body attending school while the other half learns online.

Parents can also mail in their preferences or drop them off at a school site. If the school district does not receive its goal of 100% response by Friday, the school district will extend the deadline to account for all students.

Students who opt for distance learning have several options to learn online, including a program called “My School Online” or enrolling in Miami Dade Online. My School Online will operate during normal school hours and use a uniform platform, unlike how online learning was done in the spring, which was more ad hoc due to the sudden decision to close in-class instruction in March due to the virus.

“My School Online” would keep students enrolled in their traditional school. Miami Dade Online is an established school that has its own principal.

It is not clear yet how teachers will work this fall. Carvalho said teachers will not be tasked with teaching both remotely and in person. Teachers, whether teaching in person or online, will only have one crop of students.

He said the district needs more school specific data on parents’ preferences to complete the “matchmaking process.” He said school supervisors are looking at staff to understand teachers’ underlying health conditions, age concerns, protections under the Family and Medical Leave Act and account for those who may not be able to return to an actual classroom.

School district spokeswoman Daisy Gonzalez-Diego said the district has not seen an “appreciable shift” in employee retirements compared to last year.