Leon County school board members are urging parents who can, to keep their kids home when the school year starts. A directive from the state Department of Education requires schools to offer in-person classes. But Leon County school board member Rosanne Wood says she hopes to see more parents opt for digital learning instead. She says that will mean fewer kids in the classroom and more ability for social distancing—which she says could make a big difference for people who are more vulnerable to COVID-19
"Parents are going to be able to choose to keep their children home if they have those risks or their family has those risks. The people who are not going to be able to make that choice are the teachers, and the staff and the principals. And that is a mighty big thing for those teachers to have to come into the school environment and take that risk and make that choice,” Wood says.
Wood is also asking the school board to file a waiver with the Department of Education to allow the district to make its own decisions about when it’s safe to return to brick and mortar classes.
The district has asked parents to indicate whether they plan to send their children back to the classroom this fall or stick with distance learning. So far 18,000 kids have selected in-person classes while between 10,000 and 11,000 are opting for digital classes.
Wood says parents who selected in person classes have the option to change that decision and sign their children up for digital learning instead.
