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Class Schedules Tweaked for More Student Support

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At this past Thursday’s meeting, Superintendent Franklin Walker announced minor changes to class schedules that will go into effect district wide beginning December 2. These changes are based on observations during the first marking period, he said, when it became apparent that more time is required for student support. The amount of time devoted to instruction will remain the same.

“During the second marking period, the student’s schedule from pre-school to eighth grade will include independent learning activities on Tuesdays and Thursdays afternoons,” Walker announced. “During this independent time, students who need assistance will be scheduled for individual or group support from 1:30 p.m. to 2:10 p.m.” Teachers will themselves engage in “professional learning” from 2:15 p.m. to 2:55 p.m.

Walker continued: “High school students will work independently on Wednesday afternoons. During this time, students who need assistance will be scheduled for independent or small group support from 1:30 p.m. to 2:10 p.m.” Teachers will then have time for professional learning from 2:15 p.m. to 3:10 p.m. He stated, “Now these adjustments will allow teachers to work with students who need support.”

Board Vice President Gina Verdibello questioned the new schedule and asked if teachers had been consulted on it.  She also referenced a report comparing attendance during the first marking period of this year to that of 2019, which had been presented at Monday’s caucus. According to the report, attendance was down this year across all age groups but decreased the most —by over 20% — amongst middle schoolers. Further analysis of the report reveals that attendance dropped the most in low-income neighborhoods of the city.

The report concluded with a list of six actions the district took to address the attendance problem. Despite these efforts, efforts, however, Verdibello suggested that parents need further support.

During the public speaking session, a P.S. 5 parent of two students expressed concern about the new schedule and asked it to be reconsidered. Instead of a blanket change across the district, she suggested surveying and making changes at the school level. She noted the current schedule is working for many students. Despite Walker’s assurances to the contrary, she said the new schedule would reduce time with teachers.

All of the agenda items to be voted on during the meeting were approved.

The next virtual Jersey City School Board meeting will be held Thursday, December 17, at 6 p.m.

For past coverage of Jersey City School Board meetings, please click here.

A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that the attendance report mentioned by Verdibello did not break down attendance by middle school and high school. In fact it did.

Looming Budget Deficit and Reopening Dominate BOE Meeting

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A looming budget deficit and the postponement of a reopening of schools took center stage during Thursday night’s monthly meeting of the Jersey City School Board.

Superintendent Franklin Walker presented his Superintendent’s Report, which dealt mainly with Covid-19’s impact on the district’s current $670 million budget. Walker forecast a $5-$10 million budget surplus due primarily to pandemic-related savings on overtime, on extra compensation and on goods. He said the district remains underfunded compared to New Jersey law, which calls for a $900 million budget for the 2021–22 school year. Instead he said next year the budget will be approximately $750 million and that he expects the district to have a $300 million deficit.

Walker attributed the anticipated $300 million shortfall to several factors including a $30 million cut in state aid. Revenues from the city’s payroll tax will offset some of the deficit. Walker alluded to unspecified cost-saving measures the district could take so as to not have to cut staff. Further information on the budget will be presented at the November school board meeting.

Addressing Walker’s presentation, Trustee Mussab Ali said, “Right now I don’t think it makes sense for us to make a promise like saying there will be no layoffs.” Trustee Marilyn Roman commented that she did not “know how they could possibly run the school district with any fewer people than we currently have in the classrooms” and that the city should be looking to Trenton for help with this area in particular.

Walker also discussed the district’s Covid-19 reopening plan. Given a recent statewide uptick in Covid-19 hospital admissions, given that four Jersey City teachers recently tested positive for the virus, and given difficulty securing enough teachers willing to teach in person for the immediate future, he recommended that all classes remain remote until at least the end of the second marketing period on February 2, 2020. The structure of those classes would not change before then.

There were 16 speakers for the public speaking session.

One parent of a student at PS 3, who opined that the pandemic will take months and months to abate, suggested Jersey City schools adopt a hybrid model. He said private schools have reopened with positive feedback from students and staff. Parent Catalina Perez agreed and brought up the difficulties that remote learning pose for single parents. Perez recommended a hybrid model to help working single parents whose friends and relatives may be able to babysit but don’t have WiFI. Calling upon the board to open the schools as soon as possible, she said the trustees had already had months to prepare. Crystal Thomas also spoke on behalf of parents who need to return to work.

Other parents lobbied for the alternative.

“Nancy,” a parent with students in first and fourth grades, asked the board to continue remote learning as long as necessary. Parent Brigid D’Souza echoed Nancy’s sentiments.  D’Souza also discussed budget matters. She described years of structural deficits, “systematically” underfunded schools and city real estate tax abatement policy that, she said, siphons money away from the schools.

Kristin Hopkins-Clegg, who has two children at PS 5 one with an IEP (individualized education plan), wanted to share positive experiences and provided examples.

Board president Lorenzo Richardson acknowledged the plight of single parents during the pandemic help and assured the public that he will address the matter with Mayor Fulop soon. He said that when the schools open, all students will not be able to return at once.

School Business Administrator Regina Robinson reported that the district received about $8.1 million from the federal CARES Act.

Melissa dos Santos and Elizabeth Iannitelli, who are Social Studies Supervisors in the Curriculum Department, made a presentation on the Armistad Mandate, a 2002 state law “to promote a wider implementation of educational awareness programs regarding the African slave trade, slavery in America, and the many contributions Africans have made to American society,” according to the Armistad Commission’s website. Dos Santos and Iannitelli said the city’s schools are indeed aligned with the mandate.

All of the agenda items to be voted on during the meeting including Walker’s recommendation that district classes remain remote were approved.

The next virtual Jersey City School Board meeting will be held Thursday, November 19, at 6 p.m.

For past coverage of Jersey City School Board meetings, please click here.

 

 

 

 

 

Superintendent Walker Doubts JC Schools Will Reopen Before November

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At the Jersey City School Board meeting this past Thursday evening, Superintendent Walker cast doubt that Jersey City’s schools would reopen before November.

“My concerns are that if we are out in September, there is a good chance we will be out in October as well,” the superintendent said. He added that if they do decide in September that the schools will reopen, it will still take weeks to put things in place:

“There is a good chance with us not going back in September it probably means we will not go back until November, if we go back. If we do not go back in November, we could be out till January. Our position is to err on the side of caution when it comes to the safety and welfare of our children.”

Superintendent Walker also spoke about scheduling and other matters.

There will be a “hybrid schedule for staff and possible furlough for others,” he noted, and class schedules would be posted on the district’s website. Teachers will take attendance at the start of each class and, as requested by parents, all schools will have “a nurse and an assistant.” The superintendent also reported that terminal pay for retirees had been approved by the board and would be released.

The meeting also featured remarks by Victor Pennetta, whose company, Pennetta Industrial Automation, has been brought in by the district to address concerns over ventilation in the schools.  Pennetta said that the board had “kept up with code” over bring fresh air into classrooms and other spaces in the schools including the older buildings over the years. He noted that each classroom has ventilation equipment that brings in the legally requisite amount of fresh air and has an exhaust system that pulls the inside air out.

“We are constantly bringing in fresh air, and we are  constantly purging classrooms,” Pannetta said. “The air goes through a filtering system before being distributed. When reducing students in the space, the ventilation will be much better, and there will be additional ventilation and exhaust. They have been going through the buddings with Facilities [the Facilities Department] making sure systems are up to snuff, and so far everything has been pretty good.”

Finally, the meeting featured discussion about when the school board should meet next. Board member Mussab Ali asked whether the next meeting, which is slated for September 24, should be moved up to give parents more notice should the district decide to reopen schools in October. Given the length of time needed to prepare for reopening and the fact that it is already late August, Superintendent said that the next meeting could indeed remain September 24.

The next virtual Jersey City School Board meeting will be held Thursday, September 24, at 6 p.m.

For past coverage of Jersey City School Board meetings, please click here.

 

 

 

Schools Go 100 Percent Virtual In September

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On Thursday, the Jersey City School Board unanimously approved Superintendent Franklin Walker’s five-phase plan to re-open schools in September with teachers teaching remote, virtual classes in phase one.

Effective Monday, August 17, all full-time (12-month) employees including custodians, office staff, and security personnel will report to work in person on a regular five-day schedule to begin cleaning the Jersey City Board of Education’s 45 buildings in preparation for the school year.

Teachers will report back to the classroom on Tuesday, September 8, and will begin teaching virtual classes from their classrooms to all students scheduled to report on Thursday, September 10. During that month, Superintendent Walker, the school board, and teachers will assess the safety of in-person classes with available scientific data. Until then, virtual classes will be the norm until it is safe for children to be back in the classroom.

“We all have an obligation to prepare to educate our children,” Superintendent Walker said.    “I want to make sure we have those dates clear as we continue to deal with the challenges that have been created by this pandemic.”

Superintendent Walker and the Jersey City Board of Education seem to be in line with much of the rest of the country where, according to a study published Tuesday by Burbio on CNBC.com, half of all elementary and high school students in the U.S. will be taught virtually only this fall. The study found that 52 percent will go to school virtually and 25 percent will attend every day. The remaining 19 percent will have some form of hybrid schooling, combining online and in-person learning. (Four percent of districts remain undecided.)

“Over the last few weeks we have seen a resurgence with the pandemic across the United States, especially in states which rushed to open after the initial shutdown in March and April without a clear reopening plan,” Superintendent Walker said. “We are seeing daily positive cases averaging 750,000 across America with 15,000 deaths daily. As of today, we have close to 5 million Covid-19 cases in America with 150,000 souls lost. Schools have reopened per their regular reopening calendar in some of the southern states like Georgia, and we are receiving very troubling news of dangerous spikes in cases in school among children and employees.”

To make his point, Superintendent Walker offered examples from the U.S. and abroad. Florida reported that 35 percent of children tested were positive. Israel, “which did a great job in the first phase of containment” saw its positive cases spiral out of control after schools reopened. Superintendent Walker said. “New Jersey has done a great job in the containment and a great job in the reopening of New Jersey, that is until recently,” Mr. Walker continued.

On Tuesday, according to CBS.com, more than 400 teachers in Elizabeth refused to teach in-person classes because of health concerns. In a recent response to the spikes in coronavirus infection, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy revised the June 26 guidelines presented in the New Jersey Board of Education’s “Restart and Recovery Plan: The Road Back” to reopen schools and said he will announce plans to facilitate remote learning as an option.

“We have seen our cases flatline or plateau, but unfortunately in recent days the governor has alerted us that our rate of transmission has spiked, nearing the 1.5 level,” Superintendent Walker said. “We have seen spikes in cases prompting the governor to roll back some of the reopening plans. In light of all these recent developments across the nation and what we’re seeing internationally, in addition to continued restrictions on indoor assembly in New Jersey, I cannot in good faith ask our employees and children to return to a full in-person schedule after Labor Day.”

Instead, Superintendent Walker’s  reopening plan is a five-phase timeline that begins with 100 percent virtual learning in phase one and ends with all 30,000 Jersey City public school children back in the classroom in phase five. The Board of Education has undertaken multiple surveys with teachers and parents, Superintendent Walker said, and it is clear “a majority of our parents prefer to start the year with virtual learning, which is what we’ll do”.

In a recent parent survey, 9,700 responded with 52.8 percent indicating they would not send their children back for in-person instruction and 42 percent saying they would. An overwhelming 76 percent of parents said they would not allow their child to ride a bus.

In the public comments part of the meeting, more than 40 parents called in to speak directly to the board, mostly in support of phase one’s remote learning.

Parent Tiffany Kane said she was all set to urge the board to remain in phase one and was pleased that the board was in full support of the measure.

“I do appreciate the board’s sentiment to keep us home as well,” Kane said. “I believe it is the safest place for us to be right now.”

Maria Enriquez, a parent of four in the Jersey City Public Schools and a special education teacher, echoed Ms. Kane’s comments.

“I have four kids in public school,” Enriquez said. “There is so much to be done for school buildings to be safe. My children will go back to school buildings but only when its safe.”

Parents are in a wait-and-see mode, Superintendent Walker said.

“Even though we have precautions in place, there are a lot of anxieties that exist,” Superintendent Walker said. “The plan that we have in place is a productive robust plan that can work. We will all work in tandem to ensure we will open responsibly and transition to in-person learning in phases as the science data supports it. The district understands the magnitude of the ongoing situation and will undertake efforts to support our children with proper nutrition during this pandemic phase as we have been doing these past five months. We will also undertake additional steps to see how we can support our children with counseling or any support service that can be delivered remotely.”

The Board of Education plans to ensure all Jersey City public school children have the required electronic devices and internet access for virtual learning during the pandemic.

“The health of our children, teachers, and employees come first,” Superintendent Walker said. “We will navigate and adapt and do everything to ensure a thorough and efficient education for our children and support them with additional services during this very tough time.”

Jersey City Public School’s Reopening Plan for 2020-2021 features five phases:  phase one: fully remote learning; phase two: limited in-person learning for a small group of students; phase three: easing restriction with more students receiving in-person learning; phase four: most students return to in-person learning with some exceptions for remote learning; and phase five: in-person learning for all students with limited safety restrictions.

Teachers will teach from their classrooms, Superintendent Walker said, in order to have the proper resources. They will be socially distanced and every precaution will be provided to ensure their safety. Surveying teachers, 86 percent said they would return to work; 14 percent said they would not return based on health conditions.

“We don’t know at this point in time when we will be able to implement in a safe and secure way phase two,” Superintendent Walker said. “Phase two is based on the hybrid model, in-person instruction and remote, and a group that will be all virtual. We open in phase one and reassess after the first month and make a determination after the first month.”

Trustee Marilyn Roman said: “This is a good plan, the kind of plan the state wants to see.”

The next virtual school board meeting will be held Thursday, Aug. 27, at 6 p.m.

NJ School Reopening: What’s Next as Plans Are Made to Open Classrooms

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Lawmakers, unions and activists are weighing in as schools work out details

This story was written and produced by NJ Spotlight. It is being republished under a special NJ News Commons content-sharing agreement related to COVID-19 coverage. To read more, visit njspotlight.com.

Full story link – HERE.

By John Mooney

The back-and-forth continued this week over what New Jersey schools will look like in a month, with districts up against an August deadline to devise their reopening plans and others not shy about weighing in on what those plans should look like.

The Legislature is among the first to step up the pressure, and several Assembly members filed a bill this week that would push back in-school instruction for most students until at least Oct. 31.

“I have been hearing for some time the concern that we are not going to be ready for after Labor Day,” said state Assemblywoman Mila Jasey (D-Essex) on Thursday in an interview with NJTV News.

“If we lose one child or one staff member because we opened too soon, then we’ll never be able to forgive ourselves,” said Jasey, herself a registered nurse.

The Senate’s influential education chair, state Sen. Teresa Ruiz (D-Essex), on Thursday said the Assembly bill has “some merit” but also pressed the Murphy administration to better address concerns about reopening without the need of legislation.

Safety and equity

Meanwhile, the state’s dominant teachers union isn’t letting up on its insistence that schools be safe for children and adults. While not yet threatening job actions demanding that schools open remotely, neither is the union ruling it out yet either.

And in a state where the courts often play a big part in education policy, the Education Law Center is also planting its stake, saying that, whatever decisions are made about reopening, New Jersey must fulfill its responsibilities to its poorest students.

David Sciarra, the center’s executive director, on Thursday said the state’s failure so far to show it had addressed the technology gap was troubling, especially given the inevitability of at least some remote learning.

The state has said that as many as 230,000 students may be without the needed technology to avail of remote learning. Gov. Phil Murphy announced a plan to fund up to $54 million in added technology, but his administration has yet to provide the latest data on where the money would go and where the greatest needs lie.

‘State officials continue to pass the buck’

“The state has yet to assume full responsibility for addressing the digital divide and other impacts of COVID-19,” Sciarra said in an email. “Instead, state officials continue to pass the buck to local districts without recognizing the wide variation in student need across the state, especially in our high poverty, racially isolated districts.”

“These ‘at-risk’ communities need more than guidance,” he wrote. “They need substantive action.”

Ruiz said the frustration was mounting. “A lot of questions are unanswered, and we’re now six weeks away from the opening of schools,” she said. “Six weeks out, I have extreme concerns.”

So far, Murphy has remained insistent that there be at least some in-school instruction from the start, and school districts are mostly toeing the line, following the directive to come up with a variety of models that mix in-school education with remote learning.

In a not-so-tacit admission that last spring’s all-remote instruction left thousands of children behind, Murphy has emphasized that in-school instruction — at least in some form — is required to ensure that all students get the necessary attention and education.

But the New Jersey Education Association, the state’s largest teachers union, is not hiding its insistence that not all schools will be ready to protect both children and staff if they reopen.

Signals from the NJEA

A spokesman for the union on Thursday would not specify if its members would take more organized actions but acknowledged the possibility. Nationally, the country’s second largest union, the American Federation of Teachers, said it would support teachers striking in defense of their own safety. The NJEA is part of the National Education Association, not the AFT.

“What we are doing is advocating every day that we have to keep the safety of children and educators primary,” said Steve Baker, NJEA communications director.

“There are major challenges to that, and it is not clear at this point that districts will be able to rise to those challenges,” he said.

Jasey on Thursday said she was still gauging support for her bill, which would set an Oct. 31 target for reopening in-school instruction, but would also allow for that to be shortened or extended in case conditions change. The bill would allow for students with disabilities to have in-school instruction and services in the meantime, if needed.

“I have received a lot of calls from fellow legislators and educators who are in support of this,” she said of the bill’s prospects. “And believe it or not, from parents as well. But that doesn’t mean it will be easy.”

“Opening schools is a huge task, and the concern we have about health is only the first one,” Jasey said. “The second is about the quality of the education we are able to provide. The idea behind the bill is ‘let’s pause.’”

 

Header: Photo by Akshay Chauhan on Unsplash

Fine Print: Virtual Back-to-School Checklist

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State guidance defines what’s needed for families to stay all-virtual when school starts in September

This story was written and produced by NJ Spotlight. It is being republished under a special NJ News Commons content-sharing agreement related to COVID-19 coverage. To read more, visit njspotlight.com.

Full story link – HERE.

By John Mooney

Title: “Clarifying Expectations Regarding Fulltime Remote Learning Options for Families in 2020-2021”

Author: New Jersey Department of Education, sent to all public school districts and charter schools

Date: Friday, July 24, 2020

What is it: The new guidance for the all-remote option was added last week to the state’s existing guidance for what schools needed to do to physically reopen schools in September. As the COVID-19 pandemic continues – even at relative stable levels in New Jersey – schools are facing pressures from families who want to be allowed to stay at home with remote instruction if they so choose. This three-page supplement is the state’s rules for that option, including requirements for specific online learning plans, request procedures and communications.

What it means: The guidance was released several days after Gov. Phil Murphy announced that families would be allowed to stay all-remote if they so choose. He had initially said that schools would need to provide at least some in-school instruction for all students. This latest guidance was inevitable. But it also speaks to the near-certainty of still more guidance and changes coming in what has been a fluid situation, to say the least.

Flexibility key: Murphy said on Friday in releasing the guidance that districts will be afforded wide flexibility in how they want to address each need.

Quote: “We have heard from numerous parents and families who have asked for this, and we have heard them loud and clear. Our top priority is keeping students, their families and educators safe. And to do that, flexibility, local decision making and empowering parents and educators are all critical,” Murphy said.

On the ground: As many as a third of New Jersey families have said in polling and surveys that they may opt to stay home as schools reopen. About 18% of surveyed parents in the Freehold Regional district said so even before this new guidance came out. Superintendent Charles Sampson said now districts can plan for it. “I’m sure every district at this time is working with their families on how they will do this. That is a good chunk of families.”

Six key pillars:

  • “Unconditional eligibility” for full-time remote learning: Any family can opt for all-remote instruction, regardless of medical condition.
  • Procedures for submitting requests: Minimum requirements will be in place for submitting a request to a district, including the span of time being requested and plan for transition to full in-person.
  • Scope and expectations of remote schooling: The guidance says “any student participating in the board’s fulltime remote learning option must be afforded the same quality and scope of instruction and other educational services as any other student otherwise participating in district programs.” That includes the length and time of instruction, equal access to materials, and a multitude of other schooling components.
  • Procedures to transition to in-school: A minimum amount of time for remote instruction will need to be defined by the family and district before being able to transition back to in-school. The process also includes specific services that would transition back.
  • Data collection: Districts will be required to collect data on their remote instruction option, who is using it and how it is implemented. The required categories include the number of students participating in full-time remote learning by each of the following subgroups: economically disadvantaged; major racial and ethnic groups; students with disabilities; and English learners.
  • Communication: The districts will be required to develop full communications programs that will inform all families of their options, including in all home languages of the district. The communications must include the full scope and expectations of the instruction, procedures for making requests and transition planning.

What’s not answered: Basically leaving it up to districts, the new guidance does not detail next steps in how districts will develop remote programs for students who request it. The districts’ plans are due to the state and then the public within four weeks of the opening of school, basically early August.

Teachers, too: The latest guidance does not speak at all to teachers and other employees who may seek a remote option as well. The administration has said that would be left to local personnel decisions and collective bargaining.

Quote: “The health and safety of our educational communities is paramount, and with this guidance we are providing districts with even greater flexibility to ensure that they can meet this need,” Murphy said. “We are not mandating any one specific way to move forward.”

Digital divide: District-by-district counts remain elusive, but state officials continue to say that as many as 230,000 students statewide – a sixth of the state’s total enrollment – do not have the necessary tools to take advantage of remote instruction. Murphy last week announced an additional $50 million in federal relief, but that is half of the need by officials own count.

What’s next: The Legislature has continued to press for a host of issues related to schools reopening, with some leading lawmakers calling for the start of school to be pushed back so districts can better prepare. Short of that, the districts’ plans will be coming out over the next two weeks, previewing what the fall will look like.

 

Header: Photo by John Schnobrich on Unsplash

Murphy Offers ‘Virtual-Only’ Option for 2020 School Reopening

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Governor yields to pressure from all sides, steps back from requirement that students, teachers must attend in-class instruction some of the time

This story was written and produced by NJ Spotlight. It is being republished under a special NJ News Commons content-sharing agreement related to COVID-19 coverage. To read more, visit njspotlight.com.

Full story link – HERE.

By John Mooney

New Jersey’s attempts to come up with a plan for reopening its schools in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic has been a frenetic whirlwind.

And we’re still six weeks out.

Facing pressures from all sides, Gov. Phil Murphy on Monday created a bit of a stir and said families that want to sit out the physical reopening of schools now will have a choice to stay with virtual instruction after all.

He didn’t say much beyond that, saying state guidelines were forthcoming and leaving open many questions about exactly how his announcement would work.

“The details will be coming out later this week, but we wanted everyone to know now that we will allow for this step,” Murphy said at his daily media briefing.

The latest announcement from Murphy of a “virtual-only” option for families came suddenly, as concerns were mounting about how to address those who may not feel comfortable going back to school, even with all the precautions of screening, masks and distancing.

No time for full reopening?

Murphy’s statement came after the head of the state’s powerful teachers union last week said she doubted there is enough time for a full reopening anyway. And Murphy himself  said an initiative to close the digital divide has already left hundreds of thousands of students behind.

The swirl of developments — all in late July — has left superintendents and others with their heads spinning as they prepare their districts’ reopening plans, which are  due in the next two weeks.

At least that’s the current timetable.

Brick-and-mortar instruction

Murphy had said that all districts would have to have at least some in-person instruction, leaving to districts how to design that but promoting there would likely be at least a couple of days a week of remote or virtual instruction.

But the questions grew about whether that meant all families had to participate in in-school instruction. The state has been unclear in its guidance so far, with some hearing that families may even have to withdraw their children from the school system altogether.

The state’s 104-page package for reopening schools currently does not include any provisions for parent choice, only a handful in the country without such provisions, according to one study by Johns Hopkins University.

Reacting to the news on Monday, some superintendents and other school advocates welcomed the opportunity for as much flexibility as possible. A letter to the governor signed by scores of superintendents had asked for a remote option and clarification from the state.

“We were heartened that Gov. Murphy was responsive to the voices in the field and has moved forward on clarifying a remote option for parents which will assist all of us in our planning for reopening,” said David Aderhold, the West Windsor-Plainsboro superintendent who has been outspoken in calling for better guidance from the state.

“There was great advocacy for this option,” Aderhold said in an email. “We appreciate the willingness of the governor and his administration to listen and consider issues faced by school districts across the state.”

No details yet

The department said guidance would be coming by the end of the week, although it provided no details at all about what would be covered.

A host of questions arise: Will those insisting on virtual instruction be put at any disadvantage or a possible advantage? Could it be a fluid decision to be made by parents or for a set time? What about busing; is that a separate choice?

“Districts and parents need reliable assurances from the Department of Education that it counts for enrollment and attendance purposes, and that we’re not just relying on some informal nonbinding guidance,” said school board attorney David Rubin, whose Metuchen law firm represents more than 50 districts.

“Will students whose families have opted to keep them home for the school day be permitted to take part in on-campus extracurricular activities or sports, perhaps displacing students who’ve committed to be fully present?”

Murphy on Monday would not take further questions on the issue, but acknowledged there will be many to come.

“There are a lot of moving parts to this,” Murphy said. “We want to get it right. We want to do it responsibly.”

 

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Murphy to Use $54M in Federal Aid to Help Bridge Digital Divide in State’s Schools

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But Department of Education says the full cost of equipping schools, families for remote instruction is likely close to $115 million

This story was written and produced by NJ Spotlight. It is being republished under a special NJ News Commons content-sharing agreement related to COVID-19 coverage. To read more, visit njspotlight.com.

Full story link – HERE.

By John Mooney

Hosted at an elementary school in one of the poorest cities in the state, Gov. Phil Murphy last week presented a plan that he said would help close the gaping digital divide for New Jersey public education in this COVID-19 pandemic world.

His plans only confirm just how gaping a divide it is.

Murphy traveled on Thursday to Irvington’s Madison Avenue School to announce a plan to target $54 million in existing federal aid to help buy the thousands of Chromebooks, laptops, Wi-Fi hotspots and other tools for schools and families in need if remote instruction is again to be a big part of the mix in the fall, as expected.

He said 4,800 students in Irvington alone — more than half the district — were left out of full use of remote instruction in the spring due to technology needs and in peril for the same for the fall.

“It is an untenable divide,” Murphy said Thursday. “It is not a cost we can ignore, we must address this now.”

It was an inevitable acknowledgment from the governor that whatever schools look like in September, computers for remote instruction have become the new paper-and-pencil of basic school supplies — and tens of thousands of New Jersey kids are without them.

DOE has more work to do

But despite the promise to fully close the gap, this looks to be only the start. The state Department of Education on Friday said that the full need is likely close to $115 million, and Murphy himself said as many as 230,000 students — a fifth of the state’s public school enrollment — were without the needed devices and connectivity this spring.

That’s even more than previously reported, when officials in May said about 90,000 families were without connectivity and 130,000 without adequate devices. But the state’s numbers have also always been loosely reported, and the department said it would release updated ones this week.

The DOE on Friday maintained that districts have already started to close the gap, and the additional public investment — along with an undefined public pledge drive for corporate philanthropic support — will go a long way toward closing it entirely. It cited a rough estimate of about $500 per student.

The plan would include three main components:

  • $10 million in existing federal funds to districts to purchase and provide the technology;
  • $44 million in other federal emergency funds provided by the state; and an
  • unidentified sum in business and other philanthropic funds.

The federal money that districts could receive anyway would be available in a grant process through the state education department. In what is an unusual outreach, Murphy’s plan for philanthropic support would have the state’s Economic Development Authority open a formal process for private funds to be donated from organizations and corporations.

“Any help we can get from our business community will allow us to stretch our state funds even further and offset other costs face in reopening,” Murphy said.

The details were posted last week, and proposals are due by July 31.

Sweeney, Ruiz back governor

Standing with Murphy on Thursday were Senate President Steve Sweeney and state Sen. Teresa Ruiz, inarguably the two most influential legislators when it comes to education policy. Sweeney’s attendance especially didn’t go unnoticed, given his often-contentious relationship with Murphy.

“These are tough times and there is not a lot of money, but it’s critically important that the governor will insure that all children – that’s a big word, all children – are going to be ensure the opportunity for an education,” Sweeney said.

“How many Einsteins have we lost, how brilliant kids did we lose because they did not get a good education,” he said.

Ruiz has been among the state’s most outspoken when it comes to the digital divide, and she said this investment was a start.

“The pandemic uncovered an ugly truth that many of us always knew,” Ruiz said. “It is not something that happened over the last five months, it is something that we have been screaming about for decades.

“We do not know what September will bring, but we know that many districts will be going hybrid [in-person and virtual], so let’s equip every child with that they need,” she said.

When contacted afterward, Ruiz said more investment will be necessary, citing the needs and training for teachers, as well.

“This was the easiest part to do,” she said in an interview with NJ Spotlight. “It’s just the beginning.”

 

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Another Reopening Dilemma for NJ Schools: Students, Teachers Afraid to Come Back

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School districts struggling to balance in-school/virtual instruction face another problem — educators, students unwilling to return to brick-and-mortar classrooms

This story was written and produced by NJ Spotlight. It is being republished under a special NJ News Commons content-sharing agreement related to COVID-19 coverage. To read more, visit njspotlight.com.

Full story link – HERE.

By John Mooney

Reopening schools in New Jersey may  be more than a month away, but districts and families are already facing some fundamental first-day questions.

When the doors open, will families have to send their children if the COVID-19 pandemic is still here, as is all but certain? What about teachers? And how will schools deal with decisions by parents and teachers about coming back?

Those are some of the wild cards that districts are contemplating as they develop reopening plans for September, regardless of the form they take.

The quandary is clear. Gov. Phil Murphy has declared that come September schools must be open for in-school instruction, at least to some degree. But it’s up to local districts and communities to decide how they meet that requirement, as long as they follow health and safety rules that include social distancing and wearing face coverings.

Districts are hammering out their plans, which are not due for another several weeks, and they are looking at all kinds of intricate combinations of in-person and remote instruction to ensure that schools are safe. Some are staggering schedules across days; others, weeks. What they have in common is that all are logistical jigsaw puzzles.

Basic questions left unanswered

But in its 104 pages of guidance and resources available to public schools, the state Department of Education has so far provided no path about how much choice parents and educators have in participating or not. Districts have been left to come up with their own criteria for that, too.

Jersey City this week said families will have the discretion to keep their children at home if they choose. Other districts are taking a harder line, requiring students to come in at least some of the time.

The only guidance the state has provided so far was then-Education Commissioner Lamont Repollet saying in June that whatever the choices, neither students nor teachers would be penalized if they chose to opt out.

That leaves a lot of leeway, however, and school board attorney David Rubin, whose firm serves dozens of districts statewide, said he has clients on both ends of the spectrum when it comes to whether families will have a choice.

And what’s his legal advice so far?

“Clearly districts will have to offer something in person, but what that looks like and whether there are those who will be skittish about showing up, districts will have to accommodate that in some way,” Rubin said.

“I think most would allow for some flexibility, as long as it is manageable,” he said.

Michael LaSusa, superintendent of schools in the Chathams, said there is no hard-and-fast policy in his district for a situation that will likely remain fluid for a while. So far, he said the district is trying to accommodate both teachers’ and families’ concerns.

“We have advised parents that we intend to allow them to opt for virtual instruction, if they have a concern about their child attending school,” he said in an email. “As our plans are preliminary at this point, we have not gone further than that.”

Options are not unlimited

As for teachers, LaSusa said that staff are being told they should individually raise the issue with the district to discuss the options, of which there are several but not limitless ones.

The state’s sick-leave requirements for all employees were relaxed early in the pandemic, under a new law that allowed more time for those at risk of the virus or with vulnerable members of their households. And under previous workplace and disability laws, accommodations must also be made to minimize the risk for educators and others.

The New Jersey Education Association, the teachers union, has already raised alarms about its members being required to go into buildings where they may be at risk of contagion. There has been discussion of also requiring daily screenings, for instance, on top of required masks and distancing.

“We are already seeing a wide range of (teacher) requests,” said Rubin, the school board attorney. “Some have disabilities, and some are just nervous.”

But his advice is that just being nervous will likely not be enough for a teacher to opt out.

The fear factor

“To my knowledge, you have no right to stay at home just because you’re scared,” Rubin said. “But sifting through all of those will be a complex and time-consuming task.”

The department is so far staying mum on whether more guidance is to come. But the school boards association said that acting education commissioner Kevin Dehmer in a conference call with the association said additional guidelines may be forthcoming for parental choice, while leaving teacher choice to individual districts and their staffs.

As of Wednesday, there has been nothing yet, with the department only repeating that the guidelines have been drawn from input from all stakeholders.

“New Jersey’s school-reopening guidance is really a culmination of listening to many voices over the past four months,” said spokesman Michael Yaple.

“The department held, quite literally, hundreds upon hundreds of meetings with people and organizations in the school community, ranging from educators and school administrators to parents, students, support staff and health specialists,” he said. “These meetings helped identify areas where schools faced the greatest challenges, and they helped shape our guidance.”

 

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New COVID-19 Concern for NJ Schools: Will Teachers Return to Classrooms?

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Some educators want state to more clearly map out what school will look like in the fall before committing to coming back

This story was written and produced by NJ Spotlight. It is being republished under a special NJ News Commons content-sharing agreement related to COVID-19 coverage. To read more, visit njspotlight.com.

Full story link – HERE.

By John Mooney

A great deal has been said about reopening New Jersey schools in the fall while ensuring that children remain healthy and safe. But worries are also surfacing about what going back will mean for teachers — and even whether enough of them will be willing to return to the classroom.

Steve Beatty, a top officer of the New Jersey Education Association, said Thursday there is growing concern over teachers who are hesitant to return to the classroom and unwilling to take the health risk for either themselves or their families.

“That’s a real question, will we have enough educators when we return, whatever those conditions are?” said Beatty, the secretary-treasurer of the state’s dominant teachers union in a press call on school building safety.

“Look, we are facing a shortage of teachers under normal circumstances in New Jersey and nationwide,” he said. “So this crisis is only going to exacerbate that.”

Planning in face of uncertainty

A sampling of districts contacted Thursday weren’t reporting any looming teacher exodus as yet, but some said that their staff’s worries are central to their planning for the return of school in whatever form.

Under the state’s guidelines, districts will be required to open for at least some in-person instruction in the fall, but likely in a hybrid model that mixes in-class and remote instruction.

For any schools to open, they will be required to follow health and safety guidelines such as practicing social distancing, wearing face masks, screening for symptoms and disinfecting common areas. That likely means staggered schedules and other creative solutions.

But the state has also left it to districts’ discretion how to meet those safety guidelines, with their plans expected to be finalized by early August.

Rocco Tomazic, superintendent of Freehold Borough schools, said he has heard from only one teacher who plans to retire rather than return. But he said his local association has made clear its concerns and has been working closely with his administrators in coming up with a plan for reopening.

Tough choices facing administrators

Tomazic said the choices are difficult. Keeping it to as much remote instruction as possible means more hardship on families and child care. Bringing students back into the building means more risk of contagion.

“Finding something in between may be a compromise, but keeps all of the problems around to some degree,” he said by email. “The whole thing is a dilemma, a problem with no good solution.”

This is hardly unique to New Jersey, as worries have surfaced nationwide among educators as states announce their plans for the fall. Virtually all of them so far include at least some provision for in-person instruction.

The tension has only gone up with President Donald Trump saying he would demand schools fully reopen or potentially lose federal funding, although his administration has since backed off on the latter threat.

In a poll by USA Today in early May, one in five teachers surveyed nationally said at the time that they would not be returning to the classroom under the current conditions. Not much appears to have improved, either, as surveys from individual districts and states have reiterated their worries.

Just this week, the Chicago Teachers Union released a survey in which 85% of its members said they “should not or might not go back to work in the fall without a detailed plan and resources that will help guarantee the safe re-opening of our schools.”

In New Jersey, other superintendents said they also have been working closely with their unions to address the concerns.

“There are definitely staff members with medical concerns that have raised concerns about returning,” said David Aderhold, superintendent of West Windsor Plainsboro schools.

“Further, there are staff members with medically compromised loved ones that they either live with or have responsibilities to care for that have raised concerns about reopening plans.”

The New Jersey School Boards Association said it would soon be surveying its members about a range of issues, including teacher retention. In its own blueprint for reopening schools, it cited the example of New Orleans’ loss of teachers after Hurricane Katrina and called for the state to ease requirements for incoming teachers.

The NJEA doesn’t look like it will ease the pressure, either, and Beatty pointed to the state to do more in its safety guidelines than provide districts wide discretion. He said it’s not just potential retirements but also those who are just hesitant and want protection for their own health or their families’ health. The state so far has said no teacher would be forced into the classroom against his or her wishes, but what that means is unclear.

“There can be no flexibility when it comes to the health and safety of our students, our educators and everyone in those buildings,” he said. “In the absence of authoritative state guidelines, it is driving chaos and our members are worried.”

“We need mandates, not maybes, from those who can give us more guidelines.”

 

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