Fayette will start school year with at-home learning. Superintendent cites COVID-19 surge.

Citing a “summer surge” of COVID-19, Fayette County Superintendent Manny Caulk recommended Thursday and the school board approved that the school district begin the academic year with non-traditional instruction.

Caulk said the level of the spread of the virus helped determine the recommended instructional model for the district’s more than 40,000 students. Gov. Andy Beshear announced an escalation of 611 new cases in the state on Thursday.

“There appears to be a summer surge,” said Caulk. He said there was substantial spread of COVID-19 in Fayette County and difficulty in getting rapid test results.

The Fayette County Public Schools Board of Education unanimously voted to begin the year remotely. Caulk and board members reiterated that the district had to be flexible and instruction could change and students could go back into in-person learning as coronavirus cases dropped. They said the safety of students, staff and families would be paramount throughout and they would work with public health officials.

The start date was not announced Thursday but will be discussed at Monday’s regular board meeting.

Kentucky schools ended in-person learning in March as COVID-19 spread. A committee of staff members and others have been studying how to reimagine schools for fall. Fayette district officials have been looking at data from a survey of nearly 34,000 family members that recently ended and from a staff survey on preferences on reopening schools.

Caulk said the options that had been under consideration included traditional instruction, hybrid instruction which would switch between in-person and at-home learning, and a third option which would have all students learning from home.

Some families in Fayette schools have said they struggled with NTI in the spring. District officials on Thursday discussed much improved and in-depth at-home learning, including educator training. When school starts, every student in every school can get a Chromebook and all families can get internet access, district officials said.

There will be two options for at-home learning, district staff said. Students can enroll in a virtual learning academy and commit to staying in for a semester. That curriculum will be totally based on the internet. NTI will be a different home learning model because it can include paper packets and project based learning.

In the surveys, sixty-nine percent of families said they were likely or somewhat likely to send their child back to campus. 8,800 participants in the survey said they were interested in a virtual only option, said district spokeswoman Lisa Deffendall. The options of students attending school two days a week and going virtually three days a week or going to school five days a week wearing masks were equally favored by families. Teachers best liked the option of breaking up the week between virtual and in-person learning.

Families with children in special education were anxious to return to in-person learning, the survey showed.

Board member Christy Morris said during the meeting that she was comfortable sending her children back to in-person learning at the time she completed the survey days ago, but would not be now that positive cases have increased. Board chairwoman Stephanie Spires said other parents told her they were no longer comfortable with sending kids back to school.

Some families who participated in the survey said they were anxious that their children and relatives would get COVID-19 if schools started with in-person learning. Teachers were also worried about contracting the virus and how safety rules would be enforced.

Spires read a letter at the meeting from Fayette County Education Association members who were concerned about in-person instruction, particularly for staff in high risk health categories, the availability of personal protection equipment, and the availability of substitute teachers.

After the meeting, FCEA President Jessica Hiler said, “The school board made a decision that will ensure the health and safety of all students and staff. Our teachers want to be back in school but safety must be the driving force in any decision. We are hopeful that at some point this year we can return to our classrooms in person.”

Penny Christian, president of the 16th District PTA that includes Fayette County, said after the meeting that she understood and supported the vote.

“However, I fear our most marginalized students will experience a slide that we will not be able to mitigate in the short term. NTI for long stretches is not what’s best for children in the (achievement) gap, but for the safety of all staff and families I completely agree it’s the best decision today,” Christian said.

Earlier this month, three out of five board members including Spires, and members Tyler Murphy, and Morris had expressed doubts that schools could safely open in the fall as coronavirus cases spike.

Jefferson County Public Schools officials have decided to open solely with a virtual model featuring enhanced non-traditional instruction, commonly known as NTI. Other Kentucky school districts have decided to offer in-person and virtual options.

Connie White, Deputy Commissioner of the Kentucky Department of Public Health, attended the virtual meeting, telling school board members that once in-person learning commenced, they should determine how to keep staff and students as safe as they can by reviewing guidance documents provided by the state. White said children with symptoms of COVID-19 would likely be sent home rather than isolated at school.

In terms of wearing facial masks, White said, “Children will mimic the adults.”

Board member Daryl Love asked White how contact tracing would work. White said 800 people had been hired statewide to work on contact tracing in the event of a surge. She said it takes an average of two hours for public health workers to talk to each person who tests positive.

This story was originally published July 23, 2020 at 4:13 PM.