When the community is divided, the elected school board is sometimes also divided. Thursday morning, the Hamilton Southeastern school board voted 4-3 to begin 100 percent in-person classes for grades up to 4 beginning Monday, Oct. 5. There will be online virtual classes for students whose parents choose that option.
The division on the board was not about whether to return to in-person learning, it was a debate about which date, with some board members advocating for Oct. 12 or 15 as the start date.
Board members Sylvia Shepler, Amanda Shera, Janet Pritchett and Clint Wilson voted for the measure. Michelle Fullhart, Brad Boyer and Julie Chambers voted against it.
Brad Boyer asked Superintendent Allen Bourff whether social distancing can continue to be observed with school buildings at or near 100 percent capacity, compared to the hybrid system’s 50 percent. Bourff responded that there are no guarantees but staff will enforce distancing to the extent possible. Dr. Bourff also said the wearing of masks becomes even more important as all students return to classrooms.
Julie Chambers asked whether there will be enough staffing to handle all the classrooms, and Bourff responded that administrators will be “hard-pressed” to keep all the classrooms open. Administrators told the board they would need to be creative in keeping classrooms staffed, but so far have not resorted to combining classes.
Chambers asked about students attending all-virtual and wanted to know whether those students were getting the same attention as those physically in the classroom. Bourff indicated teachers are nervous about handling students virtually while also teaching those in the classroom. A group of parents representing all-virtual students will be meeting with Dr. Bourff next week.
The Thursday morning session was billed as a special meeting. The next regularly scheduled school board meeting is set for Wednesday, and the possibility of setting a date to return students grades 5-12 100 percent in classrooms will likely be discussed and possibly considered, based on the discussions held Thursday morning.
Board releases statement following action on moving to in-person learning
By LARRY LANNAN
The Hamilton Southeastern school board acted Thursday morning to bring students back into the classrooms five days per week starting Oct. 5, up to grade 4. Below is the statement released by the school district Thursday morning. The same statement was sent to district parents.
During a work session of the Board of School Trustees on Thursday morning, Hamilton Southeastern Schools Superintendent Dr. Allen Bourff made the recommendation to allow students in PreK-4 to return on-site, five days a week (Phase III).
The recommendation follows the City of Fishers COVID-19 Mitigation and Activity Guidance for schools.
The Board of School Trustees voted to accept the recommendation. Students in PreK-4 will be able to attend school on-site, full-time starting on Monday, Oct. 5.
“We do feel based on what we know what right now, we can ensure the community with 100 percent of students (PreK-4) going back, we can have those buildings open,” said Superintendent Dr. Allen Bourff.
A virtual-only option will still be offered for students who wish to continue learning at home.
Students in grades 5-12 began on-site learning at 50 percent capacity on Thursday, Sept. 17.
HSE Schools also launched a COVID Data Dashboard this week to be as transparent as possible with the public about what is happening in the classrooms.
Data for this tracker is collected from the school nurse at each building and includes information relating to students and staff members. The tracker will be updated every Monday morning to show new COVID-related absences and positive cases that occurred in the previous week. The school nurse along with the Fishers Health Department will determine the length of quarantine based on current information and guidance. Past data will remain on the dashboard to view historical trends.
More information will be released in the updated Operations Plan and the weekly Friday Update.