The Orange County school board said Thursday it is considering creating an advisory committee of medical experts to monitor safety protocols when schools reopen next month, as a new survey found a majority of parents and educators statewide are nervous about returning to school in-person.
“We have a responsibility to our community to make informed decisions,” said board member Karen Castor Dental at a workshop on Thursday. “We are not medical experts, but we are forced to make decisions that should be based on medical expertise.”
The board plans to vote next week on the proposal for the advisory group, which potentially could include local pediatricians, epidemiologists and school nurses.
Meanwhile, the state teachers union, which filed a lawsuit on Monday against Gov. Ron DeSantis and other officials to delay the reopening of public schools, released a survey on Thursday with more than 48,000 responses from across the state.
Of those respondents, 76% of educators said they do not have faith their school can be reopened safely; fewer than 10% of educators would choose to return to work in-person and 76% of those want to exclusively continue with a virtual or hybrid model, according to the Florida Education Association survey.
The survey showed 77% of parents would prefer to continue with distance learning or a hybrid model instead of returning in-person, the survey read.
“These results present one very clear message: Parents and educators alike agree the potential negative consequences of opening school campuses too soon far outweigh the benefits,” the FEA said.
School boards in Central Florida have all come up with reopening plans that include in-person, on-campus schooling — as required by the state — along with virtual options.
Along with its plan sent to the state on July 17, the Orange County school board also sent a waiver request letter asking state officials to allow them to decide when to open schools for face-to-face instruction. They have not yet gotten a response to their request.
DeSantis has repeatedly said there needs to be in-person schooling as an option despite the spike of COVID-19 cases in Florida. In remarks on Wednesday, the governor said if schools need to delay the start date by a few weeks, then “have at it.”
But Orange Superintendent Barbara Jenkins said she spoke with Department of Education officials and that DeSantis’ message did not change Florida Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran’s executive order, which says schools must open their campuses in August and operate five days a week.
“I am discouraged that we are getting direction that’s inconsistent but we are not getting an answer to our question,” board chair Teresa Jacobs said Thursday afternoon. Orange County public school are set to reopen on Aug. 21.
In an Orange County briefing on Thursday, Mayor Jerry Demings said the state executive order has taken away the power from school districts to decide whether it is safe to reopen schools.
“Are the schools safe to reopen? The short answer is I don’t know,” Demings said.
He noted that parents have options to have their children take classes online if they don’t think it’s safe to go back to campus.
“I would encourage parents to make the right choice for their child,” the mayor said.
The potential medical advisory committee could give guidance on what to do health-wise for Orange County schools. The school board would then take its advice into consideration and make decisions about the school district, which the potential approval of the waiver would allow them to do.
“I’m not a doctor, I’m not a scientist, and I need to depend on those that are to give me good accurate information,” said board member Angie Gallo.
Orange and Seminole parents have until Friday to decide how their child will learn, and as of Wednesday, fewer than half of all students in both districts have selected an option. The majority so far have chosen virtual.
Parents have said they fear for the health of the children and teachers for in-person schooling; worry about balancing their own work day with a child’s online schooling, especially with the younger ones; and wonder if distance learning could negatively impact their children’s social and academic development.
Schools are encouraging parents to select the in-house virtual options of live-day lectures via a remote setting, in order to retain funding for teachers and staff. Officials say if students leave their respective schools to go to virtual schools, that could result in layoffs for teachers.
The board also discussed concerns surrounding teacher pay and said they’re working to ensure that faculty don’t face pay cuts or delays if the projected Aug. 21 start date for school either is delayed or begins virtually.
dacassidy@orlandosentinel.com
