Board members for Oldham County Schools approved a plan Monday that pushes back the first day of school to Aug. 24 amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The unanimous 5-0 vote was in line with what Superintendent Greg Schultz had recommended for the district's reopening plan in response to the COVID-19 emergency.
Under the approved plan, the 2020-21 school year in Oldham County will start Aug. 24 instead of Aug. 12, with students and families having the choice of choosing between in-person learning at school or virtual instruction for the fall trimester.
Schultz told board members Monday that he cannot "guarantee" how the next few weeks will play out in terms of the public health crisis but that the district's reopening plan is "solid."
Previously: Oldham County petition calls for no in-person learning amid COVID-19
The vote came a few hours after Gov. Andy Beshear announced that he is recommending the state's public and private school districts with plans for in-person instruction postpone their first days to the third week of August or later.
Schultz had also initially proposed a change in start times for the district's middle and high schools in order to allow for "intense cleaning" of buses between runs, but he later said that officials "determined that we can complete this cleaning without the extra time."
When he made his recommendation last week, Schultz pointed to several factors as influencing his thoughts on when to start the school year.
Those factors included teacher openings, obtaining cleaning supplies and recognizing an increasing number of COVID-19 cases in Oldham County.
The district currently has 13 teaching openings at the elementary school level, eight openings at the middle school level and 16 openings at the high school level, according to the Oldham County Schools website.
For the second factor, Schultz said last week that "although cleaning and sanitizing supplies have been ordered and we expect them to arrive on time, I won't feel comfortable until we have all the ordered materials in hand."
And lastly, he had said the district "can't ignore the increasing" number of COVID-19 cases "in our community."
As of Sunday, Oldham County had 478 confirmed coronavirus cases and nine deaths from the virus, according to state data.
Nearly 100 of those cases were reported July 19, according to Oldham County public health officials, who also said they were investigating a new COVID-19 case that likely stemmed from a party earlier in July involving North Oldham High School students.
More: Gov. Beshear recommends Kentucky schools postpone in-person instruction
Those recent updates to the county's coronavirus numbers are among the reasons why a group of Oldham County teachers and staff started a Change.org petition this month that calls on district leaders to start the year with remote learning, not in-person classes.
"At this time, it is unsafe to begin the school year as currently planned, given that COVID-19 cases are on the rise," reads the petition, which has more than 500 supporters.
"We are putting lives at great risk by opening schools in this manner," the teachers and staff added. "In particular, there are serious concerns about class sizes and social distancing guidelines, as well as the measures required to keep everyone safe in a school environment and the many unknowns of the virus itself."
The petition calls for Oldham County Schools to use a nontraditional instruction, or NTI, plan that is similar to what the district and others throughout Kentucky quickly implemented back in the March at the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis.
Jefferson County Public Schools and Fayette County Public Schools, the state's two largest districts, are among those that will use NTI to begin the upcoming year.
Some Oldham County teachers and parents have also criticized what they view as a gap in quality between the in-person model and the district's Virtual Learning Academy.
Several of the critics took turns stepping to a microphone during Monday's board meeting, with the speakers required to leave the room after offering their comments in observance of social distancing guidelines.
While some parents and teachers gave emotional testimony Monday about how in-person instruction will endanger their children, a few parents said in-person learning will help kids stay engaged and improve their mental health during the pandemic.
But officials with Oldham County Schools have defended the district's plan for in-person and virtual learning, noting that various safety precautions are in place for those who return to school buildings and that the online option will still feature robust instruction.
If the district needs to close down schools again due to COVID-19, as it did in March, then officials noted that Oldham County Schools will use an NTI plan.
Otherwise, Oldham County Schools spokeswoman Lori McDowell told The Courier Journal last week that there are "outside influences that make NTI difficult for families."
"Single-parent families, households in which both parents work outside the home, families that are not technologically equipped to fully support student learning, children who require specialized services and students who need the socio-emotional support offered in the school are just some of the reasons why the NTI path is difficult," McDowell said.
During a special board meeting last Friday, Schultz alluded to some of the criticism he has received for the plan to resume in-person learning and said he was alarmed at “the amount of fighting, arguing and demanding on social media and in emails."
"If we're honest and sincere and we want to be back in school, we can't do some of the activities that are happening," Schultz said. "We have had some parties. We've had some gatherings out in the community, and we are seeing positive cases as a result of those."
"Please understand, there will be people that want to make this a political situation," Schultz added. "I do not have a political party. I'm the education kid party. We need to be back with our kids as much as we possibly can. But we need everybody in the community to participate ... if we're gonna be able to pull this off. It is a huge lift."
Last week, Schultz said a little over 1,000 students had enrolled in the virtual learning option.
Under the district's plan, VLA students could switch to in-person learning at the conclusion of each trimester, with the first trimester ending in November.
Students have until Aug. 7 to enroll in the virtual option, according to district leaders.
Schultz expressed concerns last week that many families were holding off on enrolling their students in the VLA option to see if COVID-19 cases keep rising in Oldham County.
“If you’re intent on not sending your child in-person this year, then please sign up for VLA,” he said. “If we wait much longer, it’s going to get tougher and tougher.”
Under the district's approved calendar for the 2020-21 school year, the last day for students will be June 2.
Reach Billy Kobin at bkobin@courierjournal.com. Support strong local journalism by subscribing today: courier-journal.com/subscribe.
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