Newtown’s School Superintendent Dr Lorrie Rodrigue and Board of Education Chair Michelle Embree Ku both penned separate letters to district parents and student guardians after more than two dozen of them co-signed a letter earlier this month representing at least 60 students, and expressing concern about the district’s recent decision to remain in a remote learning model. Subsequently a number of additional parents and guardians also submitted their thoughts on the subject to The Newtown Bee’s Editor Nancy Crevier. (See the Letter Hive, page A-11.)

The parent letter was also circulated to the balance of school board members.

In the memo, the parents and guardians “strongly encourage you to reconsider your decision and get our students back in school, whether hybrid or full in person.”

The note goes on to clarify that “it is beyond frustrating for us to see neighboring towns with students who are attending school either hybrid or full in person. While some of these other districts do not have all schools in person, they have at least made every attempt to have their youngest learners in the classroom.”

The letter says that Newtown public school students deserve the same creative and flexible strategies that these other towns have demonstrated.

“Staying remote should have been an absolute last resort, not a precaution due to a ‘potential for ongoing quarantining.’ Our children’s education needs to take priority over a ‘potential’ problem,” the note continues. This week, the writers point out, “students in Ridgefield, Southbury, Middlebury, New Fairfield, Naugatuck, Prospect, Orange, Trumbull, Litchfield, Cheshire, Wilton, Westport, Bethel, & New Milford will all be sending some of their students to the classroom. Newtown should be on this list.”

“While the remote model may be working for some, the majority of us writing this letter are watching our children struggle like never before and seeing a huge academic decline,” the letter says. “Our teachers have been stepping up to the plate and doing the best they can at keeping up with this extremely limited educational model but only so much can be done from behind a screen.”

The adults ask school officials to consider the concerns of parents who strongly disagree with the decision.

“There must be a better plan for our students, especially our youngest learners. We would love to hear from you personally without having to write disgruntled emails first,” the memo continues. “The superintendent in a neighboring town took time to personally call parents and ask for their input. We demand to be heard and to know that our concerns are being taken into strong consideration when making these damaging decisions.”

The letter concludes, “If you are unwilling to revert back to your original plan of resuming hybrid on Monday, December 7, we request a special meeting where this topic can be discussed independently, not at a traditional BOE meeting.”

Sharing Disappointment

Ku was first to respond several hours later. A follow-up note from Rodrigue was issued Sunday evening, December 6.

The school board chair thanked those co-signing the memo “for your active involvement in your children’s education and taking the time to reach out to us.”

“We share your disappointment — we all know the importance of keeping our students in the classrooms,” Ku wrote. “Everyone has been working tirelessly and under much stress to ensure students are the focus. And the news that this hard work is not enough is disappointing.”

She explained that when the school board approved the Newtown Re-Entry Plan 2020 last summer, members knew that the superintendent and staff had prepared well for the very real possibility that schools could be in a distance learning model by October and for the majority of the school year.

“So, the fact that we have made it this far is a surprise. It took a community effort, and we are thankful,” she said.

While the superintendent has spent a lot of time in phone conversations listening to the feedback and explaining decisions, Ku said, “as important as it is for the district to be responsive to our families, decisions about health and safety or functional feasibility are not determined by parent or teacher surveys or even by Board of Education votes.”

Decisions about learning models, the school board chair said, are made based on whether there is enough personnel to staff a functional district; and the data provided by the Connecticut Department of Public Health and their most up-to-date guidance.

“Dr Rodrigue has been working closely with the District Health Director and medical professionals to use the state guidance and make informed decisions about circumstances specific to Newtown. Comparisons to other towns can be informative, but keep in mind that every district faces a different set of circumstances,” Ku said. She pointed out that while Newtown has been in the “red zone” for increasing COVID-19 case positivity, “schools remained open through much of that time despite the indicators, because, as you have noted, we have been following the most up-to-date information that indicates that there is very little coronavirus spread within Newtown school buildings.”

However, Ku said, if infection rates are high in the community, they will be high among school staff and students, and many personnel will become contacts just by being in school.

“This is largely what has led to the most recent decisions about distance learning as has occurred in other districts — Easton/Redding, Brookfield, Trumbull, Monroe, and Region 14 to name a few,” the school board chair said, adding that “the amount of work that has gone into making the different learning models possible is Herculean, and quarantines have affected office staff, school nurses, security, teachers, administrators, bus drivers, and other staff who support the operation of the schools.”

“It is up to the entire community to work together to make schools a priority and bring down the infection rates,” Ku said, disregarding the suggestion for a private meeting. “If you would still like to provide feedback about decisions, you are welcome to address the board at a board meeting during public participation,” she concluded.

District Burdens, Efforts

Rodrigue’s follow-up logically reiterated many of the points articulated by the school board chair.

She also provided some additional insight, noting, “Just last week we suffered the loss of a staff member, had to quarantine another in the office while filling that with clerical support from Sandy Hook. We had additional quarantining of key staff since then, and additional cases that would have required similar actions for students and their families had we remained open.”

Unfortunately, the superintendent said, all district personnel are faced with daily disruptions and changes due to COVID, contact tracing, and quarantining.

“While some families may not have experienced this yet, it is just as stressful for those who are being told their student and family need to quarantine, and just as stressful on staff — made worse so close to the winter break,” she said. “We are just as frustrated and disappointed based on what we continue to be faced with as a system.”

Currently, Rodrigue said, the district is down para support by 17 percent, “and finding substitutes to cover classes is even more challenging.

“However, we just received information regarding flexibility for hiring students or adults without the required credentials. As we fill these positions, I anticipate this may help regarding recruitment and the coverage of classes — for either hybrid or in-person — when we return,” Rodrigue said. “Our Parent Educator Advisory Council partnership subgroup is working on a support system for students over the next two weeks and beyond — that could support students either in remote or hybrid — with emotional connections and managing academics.”

She added that these supports can be beneficial even after the district returns from the upcoming holiday break.

Among those expressing frustration to The Newtown Bee was Heather Puebla, who said in a letter, “With there being no evidence of transmissions in schools thus far, it should be a priority to get these learners back in school full time ASAP, and not dragging out the process by returning to the hybrid model first.”

Kevin and Janet Kuzma wrote, “We must weigh the risks, and the current data shows that our schools are safe. Our governor says young kids need to be in school. We think it is time for our administration to start displaying a little more creative thinking like the towns around us. We need to get our young learners back in school.”

William DeRosa and Kersti Ferguson added, “the ineffective remote learning program is not only denying our children the kind of education they deserve but, in numerous instances, is creating emotional issues.

“Remote learning places a crushing burden on families,” they wrote. “Neither our young children nor many of us parents are IT experts. Can staying at home staring at a computer screen, struggling to navigate hastily designed virtual lessons really be the best thing we can do?”