By Crystal Hayduk
Chelsea School District (CSD) students will step up to four days a week of in-person learning on April 19, with the continuation of virtual Fridays throughout April.
The CSD Board of Education spent three hours and 45 minutes at its March 22 meeting on the topic, which included hearing public input and hammering out the agreement.
Superintendent Julie Helber and the district’s administrative team explained the learning plan with detailed procedures and protocols that will be required due to the increased density of students in the buildings.
By waiting until April 19, all staff who wanted COVID-19 vaccinations will have received it. It also allows two weeks following spring break in case COVID-19 numbers increase due to unanticipated exposure to the virus.
Keeping density lower during those two weeks will reduce the number of students in quarantine if exposed at school.
Heather Conklin, curriculum and instructional specialist, said despite the increased face-to-face time, “It’s still not normal school.”
Virtual Fridays are strategically designed for in-person academic, social, and emotional interventions for students who need additional help, for counseling and social work outreach, and for contracted time for teachers to plan collaboratively as they strive to maximize educational experiences.
Many of the previously instituted mitigation procedures will remain in place, such as masking, cleaning, hand washing, and cohorting and distancing to the extent possible.
Daily screening, quarantining for 10 days following exposure to COVID-19, and contact tracing in conjunction with the health department are also crucial.
Marcus Kaemming, assistant superintendent, encouraged people to proactively let the district know when there’s a diagnosis or a close contact. “It’s essential to keep people from finding out late,” he said. “It’s a protection from spread. We want to continue to be part of the solution and not part of the problem.”
Modifications to some policies will be required with more people in the building. According to the latest CDC guidance, students at the elementary level can be spaced three feet apart.
Students at the middle and high school levels may be spaced at a range of three to six feet apart depending on the level of COVID-19 community spread. (The CDC physical distancing guidelines are available here: https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2021/p0319-new-evidence-classroom-physical-distance.html.)
New mitigation procedures include plastic barriers in lunchrooms, tents at every building for outdoor learning and eating, open windows (weather permitting), and air purification systems in classrooms.
During the opportunity for public input:
- six speakers were concerned about students not having needs met in fewer than five full days
- perceived lack of planning and communication
- teen mental health
- hardship to families and increased exposure at childcare due to virtual Fridays.
Board members suggested:
- full-time school may reduce need for special interventions
- even if grades are okay, students may be isolated and frustrated
- increased instructional time
- other school districts “have figured it out”
- diversity of opinion among families who are under-represented during public comment
District administrators said:
- students who need additional help in any form could attend school on Fridays
- some districts have had to return to remote learning due to COVID-19 outbreaks
- families trust CSD to increase days safely and purposefully
- CSD checks MI Safe Start Map and other reputable sites daily for COVID-19 indicators
- teaching team felt fifth day plan as presented is best option
After multiple permutations for amended wording of the learning plan, a proposal to move elementary students to five days a week on April 19 and middle and high school students to five days a week in May ended in a tie with board member Laura Bush absent (Tammy Lehman, Keri Poulter, and Eric Wilkinson voted yes; Jason Eyster, Shawn Quilter, and Kristin van Reesema voted no).
Ultimately, the board voted five to one to approve the Reconfirmation Extended Covid-19 Learning Plan for April as written and directs the superintendent to provide a five-day in-person learning option in the month of May.
The board would then review/approve the May learning plan in April. Lehman cast the single no vote.
Information about the phased-in plan was distributed to district families on March 23. Families need to choose a learning model for each child—either in person or virtual—by March 26.
On March 23, Adam Schilt emailed the following statement on behalf of the Chelsea Education Association (CEA): “The Chelsea Education Association has made its position on the district’s return-to-school plan clear; we support the plan as designed by the team of leaders, administrators, educators, and staff from across the district.
“It is the opinion of the CEA that decisions on local education policy should be made by the experts in this arena. We believe the plan presented by Dr. Helber and her team, while not perfect, represents the most responsible and feasible option for Chelsea students, educators, staff, and families in the midst of an impossibly difficult year for all parties.”
CSD Board of Education President van Reesema emailed her follow-up statement, as well. “The board supports the district’s leadership to safely open with more face-to-face instructional learning in April. The board has asked for five-day in-person learning options for families to be developed for May,” she said, adding, “I would like to thank the board for collectively working together to support our families, teachers and staff during this challenging time of moving to more face-to-face learning.”
