APS - Elementary school -who is opting for virtual in 2021/22

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There are epidemiologists who are members of AEM. I have seen a couple of them gently and sensibly try to engage in back to school discussions, ventilation matters, etc., over the past year, but without advertising that they are in fact epidemiologists.

How I wish that AEM’s covid related conversations had been dominated by these actual experts over the past year, rather than by overly confident laypeople.

An epidemiologist spoke to the School Board back in January or February. Told them to put in ventilation, outdoor lunch etc so kids could return to school safely.

APS didn't listen and APE trashed him.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Wow, ventilation lady is completely flipping her shit on AEM.

I’m cackling. It’s too little too late for this year, but I’m enjoying the reaction.

SAME. I just read the comments aloud to my husband. We had a good laugh.

Just some highlights.

Duran is now incompetent because he made a decision she doesn't agree with.

Some babbling about some report she dug up.

Duran is incompetent and arrogant.

Virtual will be unfair to those who choose it

Duran is incompetent.

That's basically it.

It seems like the parents who were happy with not fully reopening this year are now totally switching their views on Duran! How fickle APS parents can be ...

I left AEM a while back (not even about the school reopening/ventilation debate, just the overall hostility). I do know the ventilation person you're talking about. What exactly is their position for the fall- continue hybrid in order to preserve 3 feet (6 feet?) between kids? Just curious as to what people are even advocating for. What are the complaints about virtual- that it will be a separate district-wide program?

I'm not even sure what they're advocating for anymore. If there's so much demand that 3 feet isn't viable anymore in in person education, wtf is APS supposed to do? I don't want my child in an office building, sorry. Or outside all day long.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:So, now APS says that distancing among students will not be possible. Even for parents of healthy kids, are you OK with that?

100% yes

Yep x2.

same

I am ok with it right now and they can start tomorrow as far as I am concerned. Zero concerns

They could have the kids cough into each other’s faces every morning and I would still gladly send my kids. Covid is less dangerous for kids than just about any of the other illnesses that go around every year, and now that all the adults in our orbit have been vaccinated, I could not care less if my kids get Covid.

How fortunate for you that your kids don't have underlying health risks that make getting severely ill from COVID more likely. Maybe you could consider other kids who have different risk factors?

Yeah, my 9 year old was diagnosed with “unspecified depression” and has suicidal ideation. He loves going to school in person and it makes his interventions so much easier. There are LOTS of kids with underlying conditions. Stop acting like everyone who wants to go back is a bad guy.

depression is not a high risk condition for Covid that keeps you from going in person.

Read my post. Some kids have underlying conditions such that they NEED to go in person. PP is acting like those of us that want full time school don’t care about kids with underlying conditions.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Both sides are now trashing Dr Duran and Syphax on AEM. That's a great way to gain influence and trust in the decision making process! Good job team!

I've watched both parent groups beg Dr Duran and the school board for private meetings at school board meetings. Yelling at them, demanding their recall or resignation and calling them incompetent makes these decision-makers want to speak to these groups daily I'm sure.

They are not obligated to meet repeatedly with parents and groups that verbally abuse them. Sorry, they are just not. They've heard your points. They know.

There is this very messed up mindset that public service workers just aren't allowed to have any boundaries. They are.

Nope, just APE. No one but APE has called for resignations or yelled or verbally abused board members, Superintendent or teachers.

or called them names or laughed at pictures they drew of Duran. That's all APE.

I just read the AEM thread. You might want to go back to it. Ventilation lady definitely called Syphax incompetent and arrogant for not following her advice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Both sides are now trashing Dr Duran and Syphax on AEM. That's a great way to gain influence and trust in the decision making process! Good job team!

I've watched both parent groups beg Dr Duran and the school board for private meetings at school board meetings. Yelling at them, demanding their recall or resignation and calling them incompetent makes these decision-makers want to speak to these groups daily I'm sure.

They are not obligated to meet repeatedly with parents and groups that verbally abuse them. Sorry, they are just not. They've heard your points. They know.

There is this very messed up mindset that public service workers just aren't allowed to have any boundaries. They are.

Nope, just APE. No one but APE has called for resignations or yelled or verbally abused board members, Superintendent or teachers.

or called them names or laughed at pictures they drew of Duran. That's all APE.

x1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wow, ventilation lady is completely flipping her shit on AEM.

I’m cackling. It’s too little too late for this year, but I’m enjoying the reaction.

SAME. I just read the comments aloud to my husband. We had a good laugh.

Just some highlights.

Duran is now incompetent because he made a decision she doesn't agree with.

Some babbling about some report she dug up.

Duran is incompetent and arrogant.

Virtual will be unfair to those who choose it

Duran is incompetent.

That's basically it.

It seems like the parents who were happy with not fully reopening this year are now totally switching their views on Duran! How fickle APS parents can be ...

Not me, fwiw. I supported him before, kept citing to the opinions of latina speakers at the board meeting in the other thread, and still support him here. Although this isn't an easy year at home, I'm fine with not changing things up in the last 10 weeks of the year. And while more space between kids would be good, I'm glad he's telling us now that the numbers of kids coming back are so high that he won't be able to manage that spacing to bring all those kids back in fall. I'm hoping my tween will be able to get a vax by then anyway.

So not everyone is mad. I think he's doing okay in a difficult environment, really.

[Anonymous]

Given that Duran has had to lead this already broken school system in a pandemic his first year in the job, I'm okay with seeing what he can do in the future. I think he does care, but he has to balance the views of his executive staff, teachers, and crazy a$$ parents on both sides. We need to start a collection of Go Fund Me for Prilosec for him.

[Anonymous]

I'm also glad he's telling people about the space issue NOW and not in the middle of summer or next fall. It shows me that he actually is planning for full return in the fall -- because I couldn't understand how APS was going to manage that if there were so many roadblocks to returning more kids to school right now.

And truly I kind of think this is the right call -- it's too early to space kids so closely together in classes right now -- there is too much chance of kids catching it from one another and bringing it home to parents who aren't vaxed yet and it's too late in the year to ask folks to make all these changes to their schedules. But everyone is on notice for next year: get yourselves vaxxed, get your kids vaxxed if you can, because kids will be back.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm also glad he's telling people about the space issue NOW and not in the middle of summer or next fall. It shows me that he actually is planning for full return in the fall -- because I couldn't understand how APS was going to manage that if there were so many roadblocks to returning more kids to school right now.

And truly I kind of think this is the right call -- it's too early to space kids so closely together in classes right now -- there is too much chance of kids catching it from one another and bringing it home to parents who aren't vaxed yet and it's too late in the year to ask folks to make all these changes to their schedules. But everyone is on notice for next year: get yourselves vaxxed, get your kids vaxxed if you can, because kids will be back.

Totally agree even though I'm not thrilled with it. He's been transparent with decisions even if it's not what the vocal majority wanted to hear. He can't make magic out of the mess he was handed, but it's clear kids will ALL have a seat waiting for them in the fall.

[Anonymous]

There some people on AEM who seem to think that getting kids back in schools in the fall with no plans for distancing is wildly reckless and will lead to a resurgence of the pandemic. I don’t understand this thinking, given that Arlington and the wider DMV area has extremely high uptake of the vaccine. Kids 12+ will be able to get it very soon. Younger kids will be masked, and for them covid is (extremely) rarely a danger anyway. The adults in the community who want to be will be fully vaccinated by the fall. Do these people think that we should just not take steps to get back to normal? Are we all supposed to pretend that covid has worse outcomes for kids than flu and strep?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There some people on AEM who seem to think that getting kids back in schools in the fall with no plans for distancing is wildly reckless and will lead to a resurgence of the pandemic. I don’t understand this thinking, given that Arlington and the wider DMV area has extremely high uptake of the vaccine. Kids 12+ will be able to get it very soon. Younger kids will be masked, and for them covid is (extremely) rarely a danger anyway. The adults in the community who want to be will be fully vaccinated by the fall. Do these people think that we should just not take steps to get back to normal? Are we all supposed to pretend that covid has worse outcomes for kids than flu and strep?

Exactly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There some people on AEM who seem to think that getting kids back in schools in the fall with no plans for distancing is wildly reckless and will lead to a resurgence of the pandemic.

I have to think these folks probably consume their Covid science and news from doomist, clickbait headlines.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
I'm not even sure what they're advocating for anymore. If there's so much demand that 3 feet isn't viable anymore in in person education, wtf is APS supposed to do? I don't want my child in an office building, sorry. Or outside all day long.

Interestingly, a lot of people trashed one of the SB candidates a few weeks ago for playing around with this very idea - what happens if we can't fit everyone back even at 3ft. They mocked her drawings, which I don't think were mean to be totally done to scale but to point out potential problems. There's a 40-something page DCUM thread entitled Shifts in the Fall? based on exactly that, her contemplating what options exist if it becomes impossible to get every single child in a classroom 5 days per week all at the same time. Duran's message shows that APS staff are similarly thinking about options.

There are plenty, notably the APE crowd and their candidate, who continue to say 5 days per week as in the old days starting immediately. They're already screaming objections that the idea even needs to be considered. Maybe it will end up being unnecessary, but that's what contingency planning is for. We know APS did a horrible job last spring, and just possibly they are trying to do a better job under Duran this spring in preparation for fall.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
I'm not even sure what they're advocating for anymore. If there's so much demand that 3 feet isn't viable anymore in in person education, wtf is APS supposed to do? I don't want my child in an office building, sorry. Or outside all day long.

Interestingly, a lot of people trashed one of the SB candidates a few weeks ago for playing around with this very idea - what happens if we can't fit everyone back even at 3ft. They mocked her drawings, which I don't think were mean to be totally done to scale but to point out potential problems. There's a 40-something page DCUM thread entitled Shifts in the Fall? based on exactly that, her contemplating what options exist if it becomes impossible to get every single child in a classroom 5 days per week all at the same time. Duran's message shows that APS staff are similarly thinking about options.

There are plenty, notably the APE crowd and their candidate, who continue to say 5 days per week as in the old days starting immediately. They're already screaming objections that the idea even needs to be considered. Maybe it will end up being unnecessary, but that's what contingency planning is for. We know APS did a horrible job last spring, and just possibly they are trying to do a better job under Duran this spring in preparation for fall.

What have school districts around the country been doing? What were the results? We are not unique, as much as we like to pretend we are. We can learn from other places, even the ones in Texas and Florida.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
I'm not even sure what they're advocating for anymore. If there's so much demand that 3 feet isn't viable anymore in in person education, wtf is APS supposed to do? I don't want my child in an office building, sorry. Or outside all day long.

Interestingly, a lot of people trashed one of the SB candidates a few weeks ago for playing around with this very idea - what happens if we can't fit everyone back even at 3ft. They mocked her drawings, which I don't think were mean to be totally done to scale but to point out potential problems. There's a 40-something page DCUM thread entitled Shifts in the Fall? based on exactly that, her contemplating what options exist if it becomes impossible to get every single child in a classroom 5 days per week all at the same time. Duran's message shows that APS staff are similarly thinking about options.

There are plenty, notably the APE crowd and their candidate, who continue to say 5 days per week as in the old days starting immediately. They're already screaming objections that the idea even needs to be considered. Maybe it will end up being unnecessary, but that's what contingency planning is for. We know APS did a horrible job last spring, and just possibly they are trying to do a better job under Duran this spring in preparation for fall.

I saw that thread. It devolved into APE vs SR ridiculousness.

I’m confident that we can safely open five days a week in the fall, with whatever mitigation measures needed by then. Interestingly, it’s the high schoolers who we don’t have to worry about next year. Hopefully enough of them will be vaxxed by then. Hoping that ms and es kids will start getting shots sooner rather than later.

The hysteria on both sides will hopefully have a summer to simmer down.