Isle of Wight changes mind on hybrid reopening plan; only pre-K through 3rd grade to have in-person school
The Isle of Wight School board voted Monday to rescind a partially in-person reopening plan that it approved last week.
The board still kept a hybrid option for preschoolers through third-graders when schools open Sept. 8, making it one of only a few districts in eastern Virginia that will let students back in buildings. High school students will also be allowed to come back for career and technical education courses.
On Thursday, the board voted 3-2 to allow students in elementary and middle school to join the two-day-a-week hybrid option or stay online for the first semester.
“To rescind the adoption of this plan means we are saying this board knows what is best for the children, and we choose to disregard the will of the majority,” board chair Jackie Carr said in Monday’s meeting at Westside Elementary School. She had proposed the hybrid option that was approved at Thursday’s meeting.
Surveys conducted by the district showed a majority of parents and teachers wanted some kind of in-person option.
Just under 40% of families said they would choose an all-virtual option for the first semester, Superintendent Jim Thornton told the board. In any plan, the district like others in the state is offering parents the opportunity to opt out of any in-person instruction this fall.
Thornton reviewed Monday local COVID-19 statistics and the state’s guidance for reopening schools, which was issued in early June before COVID-19 cases started to spike in the eastern part of the state.
Although Isle of Wight’s case counts have remained relatively low compared to surrounding localities, other counties and cities have seen rising numbers. Thornton told the school board that he couldn’t make a recommendation on which trend was more important.
The district ran a limited in-person summer program at Windsor Elementary that included about 50 students. No COVID-19 cases have been reported from that, and so far the Virginia Department of Health hasn’t reported any outbreaks in educational settings in Isle of Wight.
“I think it is clear what will happen when we put children back in school, whether that is on Sept. 8 or nine weeks later. Data is clear: the more you put individuals together, some students will get sick, and some staff will get sick,” Thornton said. “What we don’t know yet is how the mitigations and physical distancing will work in a school setting.”
After the board voted 3-2 to rescind the plan Monday, Thornton recommended a hybrid option for grades pre-K-3rd along with English language learners and students in special education programs.
Before the pandemic, every classroom in those grades had no more than 12 students, so Thornton suggested that physical distancing would be possible.
Those grades are in line with Phase 2 of the state’s reopening guidance for schools. The state is in Phase 3 of Northam’s reopening plan generally, but the school guidelines allow schools to go more slowly.
Most districts in Hampton Roads have made the choice to start the year online. School boards in Norfolk, Chesapeake, Portsmouth, Virginia Beach, York, Southampton Gloucester and Williamsburg-James City County have all voted to start the year virtually.
Carr emphasized concerns about child abuse going unreported in advocating for hybrid options. Thornton said he was concerned about the lasting effects on literacy that continued online education could have.
“I do not agree with statements that I have read that all teachers can deliver instruction virtually,” Thornton said. “I’ve been an educator for 32 years and a superintendent for 17 years, and I challenge anyone, including my colleagues, that think that they can teach reading in a totally virtually setting with pre-K through third grade students.”
Alvin Wilson, who represents the Hardy District, was the deciding vote Thursday, voting yes for the larger hybrid option after at first saying he wasn’t ready to vote.
He was part of the group of board members who called for the special meeting Monday to rescind the plan too. The meeting started with a statement from Wilson.
“I made a mistake,” Wilson said. “I’m just asking for your forgiveness.”
Wilson also made the motion Monday to rescind the plan. There was some confusion about the wording of the motion, which led to a brief recess and the school board attorney intervening before the motion was voted on.
“This is very hard for me because I have feelings on both sides,” Wilson said.
It passed 3-2, with Carr and vice-chair Julia Perkins opposed.
The vote for the new hybrid plan was unanimous. Vicotira Hulick and Denise Tynes, who had voted against Thursday’s plan, voted in favor.
Matt Jones, 757-247-4729, mjones@dailypress.com
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