Local school districts weigh whether to return to in-person learning after the holidays
DELAWARE COUNTY, Pa. - While we may be pushing Monday out of our minds until after New Year's Day, as COVID-19 cases surge, it's top of mind for school districts across our area.
"All of those things right now make superintendents lose a lot of sleep," says Dr. Marc Bertrando, Superintendent of the Garnet Valley School District.
On Thursday, the Pennsauken, New Jersey, school district joined the short but growing list of public schools that announced they will be fully remote after the holidays until Jan. 10.
However, in Delaware County, Pa., Dr. Bertrando says the Garnet Valley School District, like almost all county districts, will return to in-person learning. Fortunately, they haven't had to go fully remote yet this school year
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"We certainly won’t compromise health and safety just to meet our goal of bringing kids into school, but with that said, we’ve had such good experience up until this point we at least want to give it a try," he says. "If we have to go back to virtual for a period of time or have to quarantine a few classrooms, we’ll do that, but I think the last two years have proven to us how important it is for kids to be in school, so we’re going to continue to try with all of our might to achieve that goal.
On Thursday, he sent a letter out to parents with reminders including their mask requirement and daily symptom screening. He says even simple cold-like symptoms, such as a runny nose, should keep your child home to get tested
In Montgomery County, the Norristown Area School District says that will be key to staying open
"If we get even one person that does that and it does spread, that’s what’s going to shut us down," says Superintendent Christopher Dormer. "The sensitive timely data that we normally have, and the communication we have, we haven’t had that for about a week.
In Delaware, Governor John Carney says they too are leaving it up to individual districts, but he feels in-person learning is the priority
The number of cases isn't the only potential issue, but also the number of staff that have to stay home
Superintendent Bertrando and Dormer both tell FOX 29 they already have a shortage of substitutes and teachers, a problem before the pandemic.
"I think that would be the number one reason why we have to go virtual, it’s just going to be because of the lack of available bodies," says Dormer.
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