APS Level 2 Return to school

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I saw this announcement today and my heart dropped. We will *talk* about a date for only early elem in a few more weeks. What does that mean for kids in HS? Do they ever get to go back? I'm so frustrated. Once all teachers are vaccinated, they need to open all hybrid back at once. This is ridiculous.

There has been so much fear-mongering from the beginning about the dire consequences if school opened, and here we are in Feb., with schools open all around the country, and our kids are sitting at home. Meanwhile, the worse case scenarios have not happened anywhere.

The discussion will be done at that point. The return date will be announced.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think the people who defend Duran fail to acknowledge that we are in the 38 percent in the country in which offer only DL. 62 percent of the country has offered at least some in person learning. Private schools have been in person since September. You don’t need to look too far away for the proof schools are safe even if you don’t want to read the medical literature. Duran has not even offered in person education to special needs kindergarten students!! He has been a pathetic leader just waiting on other school districts. There is absolute no health reason or data to suggest schools should be closed until every single teacher is vaccinated! Northam and Hogan both stated the same. As a healthcare worker, l have been in the office since March. I never once asked for a vaccine as a condition to do my job. Fairfax County knows that and is putting kids first. The APS teachers have had a free paycheck all year at our children’s expense. Its high time we call a spade a spade here. Duran should have brought K through 3 back in December and middle and high school this month.

Ok... let’s not “fail to acknowledge” that this 62% includes rural Kentucky, Iowa, Minnesota.... and you live in a major metropolitan suburb. Call a spade a spade. Fairfax County? Really? Let’s see it pan out. I have seen promises, promises- but they ain’t doing any better than APS, except for the false promises. You think Northram is against VDH guidance? Just stop.

[Anonymous]

The teachers aren't vaccinated, the buildings aren't ventilated, it's 32 degrees outside and not very conducive to outside lunch or outside anything else, and nobody is even trying to put kids into cohorts. All or most of these problems could be mostly solved in a month or two but never mind that we want what we want NOW.

[Anonymous]

No 62 percent includes NJ, NYC, Ny state, Connecticut, Rhode lsland, Dallas and Charlotte. Today it includes DC public schools and Chicago and Nashville. You can’t lie your way out of this. There’s no excuse to not open schools in APS with the amount of risk mitigation and resources in place. Again, 3000 kids in Catholic school have been back in Arlington. Can you tell me how many teachers and kids have died... thought so.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The teachers aren't vaccinated, the buildings aren't ventilated, it's 32 degrees outside and not very conducive to outside lunch or outside anything else, and nobody is even trying to put kids into cohorts. All or most of these problems could be mostly solved in a month or two but never mind that we want what we want NOW.

And the variants are just getting started. I’m grateful APS is protecting its teachers in light of what many think will be an increase in hyper contagious strains of the virus. I hope the other area that have been open get their teachers vaccinated ASAP.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No 62 percent includes NJ, NYC, Ny state, Connecticut, Rhode lsland, Dallas and Charlotte. Today it includes DC public schools and Chicago and Nashville. You can’t lie your way out of this. There’s no excuse to not open schools in APS with the amount of risk mitigation and resources in place. Again, 3000 kids in Catholic school have been back in Arlington. Can you tell me how many teachers and kids have died... thought so.

NYC is elementary only. And very small percentages opted in. DC is INVITATION ONLY for high risk students. Which is what APS could have done if the entitled in N Arl didn’t insist it is their right to attend in person in the middle of a pandemic. Many of the system you cite above are open under much narrower circumstances. Jamestown’s demand for 80% hybrid is a bit harder to accommodate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm working from home now and I'm not planning on sending my middle schooler to summer camp in who knows what conditions where they surely won't adequately police spacing or mask wearing in a pool. My kid hasn't had that rough of a time so from my perspective I wouldn't mind riding this out into next school year by which point hopefully we will most all be vaccinated and ready to go.

So this plan is a-okay with me. It's the severely disabled and the youngest kids who need the help the most (and I get sending the high school career center kids with the hands on courses as well).

You are in the minority. And a bit insane.

NP, but at our school barely less than 50% of kids will be back, and even still there are plenty of parents planning to switch from hybrid to DL. Not everyone has your same health profile and risk tolerance

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think the people who defend Duran fail to acknowledge that we are in the 38 percent in the country in which offer only DL. 62 percent of the country has offered at least some in person learning. Private schools have been in person since September. You don’t need to look too far away for the proof schools are safe even if you don’t want to read the medical literature. Duran has not even offered in person education to special needs kindergarten students!! He has been a pathetic leader just waiting on other school districts. There is absolute no health reason or data to suggest schools should be closed until every single teacher is vaccinated! Northam and Hogan both stated the same. As a healthcare worker, l have been in the office since March. I never once asked for a vaccine as a condition to do my job. Fairfax County knows that and is putting kids first. The APS teachers have had a free paycheck all year at our children’s expense. Its high time we call a spade a spade here. Duran should have brought K through 3 back in December and middle and high school this month.

How do the COVID rates in that 62% compare with Arlington? I'll wait....

[Anonymous]

I'm curious about the situations of the people on here who are adamant that teachers and kids of middle and high schoolers should immediately or near-immediately return to school? Are the people who are having a really rough time with this here:

* work from home parents who have high powered jobs and are having trouble either balancing everything or hiring additional people to come in and managing that exposure (or maybe pay their nannies more);
* same, except essential workers who have to report to work;
* parents who have lost their jobs and need everything to get back to normal so they can find work;
* stay at home parents who are good people but are just out of their depth assisting with virtual school;
* parents who are working relatively low wage jobs and cannot afford to go on like this much longer;
* parents who have seen their kids academic performance severely deteriorate and just really need help from teachers to get things back on track.
* parents of three or more kids who could manage this for a while but all the demands, all the meals at home, all the homework help, all the tech help, multiplied by however many kids there is just too much at this point.

[Anonymous]

I think a few categories of Arlington parents have been omitted!

* spouses of people with high powered jobs who are used to having ample leisure time;
* parents who complain about APS when it does A, and then when it takes a corrective course to do B instead, complains about that also.
* parents who need SPORTS SPORTS SPORTS to start up for real again let's go!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think the people who defend Duran fail to acknowledge that we are in the 38 percent in the country in which offer only DL. 62 percent of the country has offered at least some in person learning. Private schools have been in person since September. You don’t need to look too far away for the proof schools are safe even if you don’t want to read the medical literature. Duran has not even offered in person education to special needs kindergarten students!! He has been a pathetic leader just waiting on other school districts. There is absolute no health reason or data to suggest schools should be closed until every single teacher is vaccinated! Northam and Hogan both stated the same. As a healthcare worker, l have been in the office since March. I never once asked for a vaccine as a condition to do my job. Fairfax County knows that and is putting kids first. The APS teachers have had a free paycheck all year at our children’s expense. Its high time we call a spade a spade here. Duran should have brought K through 3 back in December and middle and high school this month.

I’ve collected a free paycheck all year? Come watch me collect my “free” paycheck. Total ignorance. I bet your done with your job at a certain time every day? Not true here. In person or doing distance learning. I’m not complaining about it, but for you to say teachers are getting a free paycheck... you really don’t understand teaching and learning at all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm curious about the situations of the people on here who are adamant that teachers and kids of middle and high schoolers should immediately or near-immediately return to school? Are the people who are having a really rough time with this here:

* work from home parents who have high powered jobs and are having trouble either balancing everything or hiring additional people to come in and managing that exposure (or maybe pay their nannies more);
* same, except essential workers who have to report to work;
* parents who have lost their jobs and need everything to get back to normal so they can find work;
* stay at home parents who are good people but are just out of their depth assisting with virtual school;
* parents who are working relatively low wage jobs and cannot afford to go on like this much longer;
* parents who have seen their kids academic performance severely deteriorate and just really need help from teachers to get things back on track.
* parents of three or more kids who could manage this for a while but all the demands, all the meals at home, all the homework help, all the tech help, multiplied by however many kids there is just too much at this point.

I think they could be parents of kids that really, really want to go back to school. I totally get that, and I think they will soon. The health metrics will change- but their outrage and complaining won’t do a damn bit of good.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No 62 percent includes NJ, NYC, Ny state, Connecticut, Rhode lsland, Dallas and Charlotte. Today it includes DC public schools and Chicago and Nashville. You can’t lie your way out of this. There’s no excuse to not open schools in APS with the amount of risk mitigation and resources in place. Again, 3000 kids in Catholic school have been back in Arlington. Can you tell me how many teachers and kids have died... thought so.

Quite simply, they have different community transmission rates. Ours is improving as of the last couple of weeks, but among the worst in the country. None of these districts have fully reopened, and APS has brought two cohorts back. I think you probably know that, but maybe not that you can’t owe on people and tell them it’s raining.

They are doing the best they can.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think the people who defend Duran fail to acknowledge that we are in the 38 percent in the country in which offer only DL. 62 percent of the country has offered at least some in person learning. Private schools have been in person since September. You don’t need to look too far away for the proof schools are safe even if you don’t want to read the medical literature. Duran has not even offered in person education to special needs kindergarten students!! He has been a pathetic leader just waiting on other school districts. There is absolute no health reason or data to suggest schools should be closed until every single teacher is vaccinated! Northam and Hogan both stated the same. As a healthcare worker, l have been in the office since March. I never once asked for a vaccine as a condition to do my job. Fairfax County knows that and is putting kids first. The APS teachers have had a free paycheck all year at our children’s expense. Its high time we call a spade a spade here. Duran should have brought K through 3 back in December and middle and high school this month.

How do the COVID rates in that 62% compare with Arlington? I'll wait....

Right?! That’s ridiculous. Go hang a sign, lady.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm working from home now and I'm not planning on sending my middle schooler to summer camp in who knows what conditions where they surely won't adequately police spacing or mask wearing in a pool. My kid hasn't had that rough of a time so from my perspective I wouldn't mind riding this out into next school year by which point hopefully we will most all be vaccinated and ready to go.

So this plan is a-okay with me. It's the severely disabled and the youngest kids who need the help the most (and I get sending the high school career center kids with the hands on courses as well).

You are in the minority. And a bit insane.

NP, but at our school barely less than 50% of kids will be back, and even still there are plenty of parents planning to switch from hybrid to DL. Not everyone has your same health profile and risk tolerance

And you're entitled to your opinion and risk tolerance but at least give the people who are willing a chance to have their kids back in school.