The Great Neck school district announced its options for the 2020-21 school year as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, including one for parents to have their children taught on a strictly remote platform.
The 40-page plan does not specifically mention what the initial routine for students will be starting on Sept. 2, the first day of school, but a remote option was provided for all students, according to district Superintendent Teresa Prendergast.
“I know there were quite a number of families who did not meet the specified criteria to qualify for remote learning as outlined in my last communication,” Prendergast said in a statement. “Since sending that email, we received further information from our legal counsel, and therefore, I have decided that we will change to an offer of exclusive remote learning for ALL who desire this for their children. As you can see, I listened.”
Prendergast said that those who choose to exercise the remote learning option will be exposed to a combination of synchronous and asynchronous learning. Prendergast said those who wish to have their child take part in the exclusive remote plan are required to submit a form by Wednesday, Aug. 5.
Those who have their children in remote learning, but wish to withdraw them at a later date will be receiving an email in mid-November asking parents if they choose to remain or opt- ut of exclusive remote learning. Those responses are required by Dec. 1, in order for the district to have facilities prepared when students return from winter break on Jan. 4.
Prendergast said the district cannot guarantee that in-school options will be available for students who choose to opt out of remote learning based on the number of responses the schools receive and maintaining social distancing guidelines from the state.
According to the plan, staff and students are required to wear a mask and those masks can be used from home. Face masks breaks will also be incorporated throughout the school day.
Bathroom trips for students will be limited to one person in the facility at a time while others waiting can do so outside in the taped off areas. A quarantine room will also be established for students that exhibit symptoms of illness.
While the district intends to provide daily meals for every student, food options will be limited to “cold only” sealed trays for purchase. No cash transactions are allowed, and an automated online purchase and ordering system will be put into place.
Prendergast said the remote instruction the district provided was, for some, not up to “Great Neck standards” and said the district pledges to do better in the fall.
“We know that nothing this year can be the same as it was before, and our hearts break for our children and our staff as well,” Prendergast said. “We realize that September will require an understanding on everyone’s part that we are all doing the best we can under these difficult circumstances.”
This point may have been echoed from a coalition of Great Neck parents who formed a website and petition that calls for the district to clarify the plans and ensure that full-time in-person instruction would take place.
“As parent advocates, we demand that the district commit to delivering a comprehensive program that includes standards to ensure that our children receive more than a half-hearted apology from the Board of Education and an empty pledge from the Superintendent for failing to provide them with an exceptional educational program in the spring,” the petition reads.
The petition also described the district’s past spring education offerings as “vastly truncated school days, inconsistent policies for how teachers delivered educational services, and a lackluster approach to innovation.”
The petition calls for the Board of Education, superintendent and administration to set educational standards for full, in-person instruction five days a week, develop and announce a schedule that will be adhered to by every educator, and share the plans of how a “quality education” will be provided to the district’s students and develop a system for parents to voice concerns in real-time.
Recently re-elected Board of Education member Rebecca Sassouni sent out an email after the petition was posted, thanking Prendergast for spearheading the district’s efforts and recognizing the communal concerns that were expressed.
“There is genuine worry about a contagious virus,” Sassouni said. “Also, there is media contagion that amplifies our cynicism and fears while it lays bare our human grasping for reassuring information during an anxious time. Thus, for some, the information in the District plan is sufficient; for others it still feels lacking.”
Sassouni acknowledged that all of the affected stakeholders from administrative staff to parents and community members may feel apprehensive about returning to in-person instruction.
“Although we are in it together, perhaps a corollary is that each of us is also alone in a different space, whether due to physical, familial, financial, emotional, or other vulnerabilities,” Sassouni said. “Thus, each of us has individual choices to make in the days and weeks ahead. The choices you make are ultimately deeply personal and will be respected. Rather than look outward to others, I encourage each to turn inward and decide how best you think you can abide crossing your threshold.”
A more comprehensive overview of the measures the district is taking can be found on the district website.
