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Amity Middle School in Bethany
Photo: File Photo / File PhotoAmity Middle School in Bethany
Amity Middle School in Bethany
Amity Middle School in Bethany
WOODBRIDGE - The Amity School District has announced in a letter to parents that the full in-person learning model will resume Nov. 5, but some parents are circulating a petition to keep the hybrid model for now.
As of early Monday, nearly 900 had signed the petition.
The petition comes as Superintendent of Schools Jennifer Byars notified parents that on Friday the district received word that another person in the Amity Regional School District tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total to at least four. It could not be determined if the case is in a student or staff member.
Under Amity’s plan, the return to full in-person would coincide with the beginning of the second marking-period and parents would still have the option of voluntary remote learning by completing a form.
The hybrid in-school model that students are operating under now combines an abbreviated in-school model with distance learning to reduce the amount of time spent in buildings. The Amity regional district is comprised of the high school in Woodbridge and two middle schools, one in Orange and one in Bethany.
Both Amity officials and the petitioners cite COVID data in their respective arguments.
The letter from Byars notifying of the plan to start Nov. 5, cites a portion of the state Department of Education reopening plan “the experience in our state since school reopening began indicates that transmission has been a rare event inside of school buildings even in communities with elevated transmission rates, likely due to the high-level of planning and compliance with mitigation strategies designed to prevent transmission between individuals.”
Byars said Monday that, “As was stated in the letter, this decision will be based on the leading and secondary indicators in Addendum 4 of the CSDE reopening plan.”
“It will also be made in consultation with the 2 health districts that serve Amity and our school district medical advisor. As also stated in the letter, the decision will not be based on opinion, Byars said in a email Monday. “Just as the decision to start the year in a hybrid model came with emails from our community both in support and against, the move to full in-person learning has come with emails from the community both in support and against, which is why it is important to use data and the CSDE guidelines in decision making.”
Byars also said that when the district first developed the reopening plan, it wanted to provide families and staff a 2-week window before changing learning models. “While the letter identifies a target date for a return to full in-person learning, we will monitor the metrics up to that date and will make adjustments based on the metrics and data. Any changes would not be based on a petition, but on the data available to us,” she said Monday.
Byars’ letter goes on to state more of the report: “This same level of planning and compliance is not necessarily in place in other settings outside of school buildings.”
But the petition to delay the move and keep hybrid learning for now states parent opinions on a survey weren’t considered and it’s a bad time as cases increase in Connecticut.
The petition states that the return to full in-person learning “depends on many rapidly changing variables, involves complex and challenging decisions for all of us, and cannot be taken lightly.”
The fears, according to the petition, include that many parents will opt for full in-person learning, rather than remote and as the number of students together in the building increases, along with class sizes and bus rider numbers, so will COVID transmission.
“At the moment, the hybrid model is working, and is protecting students when cases do arise. The hybrid model is a good compromise, addressing both student academic and social needs, as well as public health concerns,” the petition states. “At a time when cases are increasing, and public health experts believe they will surge in the coming weeks, the best option at the moment would be to continue with the hybrid model, while also recognizing the potential need to close the schools temporarily if we are faced with high levels of community spread.”
The petition asks the district to continue with the hybrid model until there is data, “suggesting the rates of infection have peaked and returned to an appropriately low and stable level.”
But Byars’ letter to parents states that by starting the year in a hybrid model, the district was “able to set expectations for students regarding health and safety practices, establish cleaning protocols, monitor air flow in our HVAC systems, and make adjustments for a safe return to school for all students and staff.”
“Amity has had tremendous success in our reopening and I thank the teachers, students, parents, administrators, and staff who have all worked together to make this happen,” Byars’ letter states, continuing, “With ongoing diligence to our health and safety expectations, we look forward to welcoming all our students back to school.”
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October 26, 2020 at 08:25PM
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Parents push back on Amity school plan for return to full in-person learning - New Haven Register
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