Majority of Fayette school board doubt in-person classes can start safely as COVID spikes

Three out of five Fayette County public schools board members, including the chairwoman, said Monday they are unsure whether schools can safely reopen in the fall to in-person learning as coronavirus cases spike.

“Until we see decreased cases and increased rapid testing, I do not believe we can safely reopen our schools,” chairwoman Stephanie Spires told the Herald-Leader Monday.

“For me personally, I’m not going to send our kids and our staff back into the classroom until we have those things,” Spires said at a virtual school board meeting.

Superintendent Manny Caulk said at the virtual board meeting Monday that a special meeting would be held next week to discuss a plan to start classes in the fall. He announced July 1 that the Fayette County Public Schools is looking at going back to school the week of August 24 with a new model of on-campus, face-to-face instruction.

Board members Christy Morris and Tyler Murphy said they agreed with Spires.

Morris said she didn’t think the district had enough space or personal protection equipment for a safe reopening.

“I don’t think our families and teachers feel that we can keep them safe and open schools like business as usual,” said Morris.

“I agree that if the current trajectory continues and absent appropriate support and resources, we cannot safely return to in-person instruction,” Murphy said.

Spires noted that some of the largest school districts in the country --Los Angeles and San Diego -- announced this week that they are going to reopen with online only, not in-person classes. States including Kentucky are seeing a spike in cases.

Gov. Andy Beshear on Monday pointed out the uptick in positive cases among children and staff connected to daycare centers — at least 20 staff and nine children have so far contracted the coronavirus.

Board member Ray Daniels said he will wait to get recommendations from a district committee studying reopening Fayette schools.

“The process needs to be inclusive of all stakeholders with clear timelines,” Daniels said.

He said at the meeting that families have to have enough time to prepare once the school board makes a decision

Fayette board member Daryl Love said after the school board meeting that, “at this point, I feel we need to examine and weigh both community (parents and students) and staff feedback, along with COVID-19 trend data, in making a decision on how to safely and effectively educate our students in the fall. “

District officials are still waiting for data from a survey of families that recently ended and from a staff survey on their preferences on reopening schools. Kentucky schools ended in-person learning in March as COVID-19 spread.

“My intent tonight was to let people know we are listening and we hear their concerns,” said Spires. “And this is fluid and we recognize how many people felt two weeks ago, might not be how they feel now.”

“We all want our students in the classroom. The question is how to do that safely. And our families need a plan. Families are anxious and worried about childcare and employment,” she said.

She mentioned that 80 percent of the district’s school bus drivers are in an at-risk group because of their age. Many teachers have pre-existing conditions that put them in a high risk group, Spires said.

Fayette County Education Association members are concerned about the health and safety of their students, staff and their own families, President Jessica Hiler said Tuesday.

“As you can imagine they are nervous about the unknowns. Such as, will there be a virtual option for both students and teachers?” Hiler said. “What are the protocols if we have a positive test from a staff or student, if we are using the in-person model? Teachers are anxious to receive the reopening plan so they can start planning for the 2020-2021 school year. “

Caulk said he has heard from parents who say they want and need the resources their children would receive back in the classroom.

Under one option posed to Fayette parents, all students would physically attend school and are required to wear a mask. Families could opt out for a virtual/remote learning experience.

Under another option, a Group A would physically attend school Monday through Thursday for a week and Group B would physically attend school Monday through Thursday the next week. On Fridays and alternating weeks, students would be learning at home.

Caulk said during the meeting that all voices were equally important.

This story was originally published July 14, 2020 at 10:45 AM.