Employee. Teacher. Parent. Charlotte families face the school year during COVID.

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced change into families across the globe. Parents who typically commute to work are now balancing working from home in a house full of children. Kids have transitioned to virtual learning. And the new school year will challenge not just kids, but also the adults.

While many school districts in the Charlotte Metro area have implemented virtual options for the 2020-2021 school year, each district is handling other options differently, with some districts offering a mixture of virtual learning and in-person options.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg schools (CMS) will open Aug. 17 with remote learning to help curb the spread of COVID-19. Initially, there was the option for Plan B Plus Remote, which allowed for an in-person two-week orientation period and then remote learning until it’s deemed safe to return to in-person classes full-time. However, to curb the spread of the virus, all learning was switched to virtual under Plan C for the time being. Of course, remote learning will pose challenges to students living in rural areas and students who expected to participate in sports this school year.

For other local school options, including Cabarrus County, Gaston County, Iredell-Statesville, Lincoln County, Mooresville and Union County in North Carolina and Clover, Fort Mill, Rock Hill and York in South Carolina, check out The Charlotte Observer’s guide.

We talked to five families in Charlotte area schools navigating the pandemic to understand how the virus has changed their school decisions, their routines and their households.

We’ll be publishing these over the next few days, one at a time. Here’s the first three:

This single mother and attorney must balance her Charlotte law firm, remote learning

“What began as a nice break from the chaos of life turned into chaos at home. I had to develop healthier routines and expectations to get us through.”

Rhonda Patterson, a family law attorney known as the Queen of Custody (a name coined by her late mentor, Billie Ellerbe), is a single mother of two children, London, a sixth-grader, and Drew, a third-grader. While she and her children have had the good fortune of maintaining their health during the pandemic, COVID-19 drastically changed their day-to-day lives. Continue reading ...

For this Charlotte family during COVID, remote learning alone won’t be enough.

These parents are forming a learning pod with other NoDa neighbors for the upcoming school year.

Claire Refaey and her husband, Eid, are in charge of a bustling household in NoDa, where precocious 9-year-old Adam and spirited 2-year-old Rosie keep everything exciting. The Refaey family also houses Eid’s niece, an international student from Egypt attending UNC Charlotte. Continue reading ...

In COVID quarantine, these Charlotte parents reconnected with their children.

This family, finding the silver lining of togetherness, has turned their home into a classroom for the school year.

Khalif Rhodes, attorney and owner of The Rhodes Firm, has been navigating COVID-19 with his wife, Courtney, a recruiter for Lowes, their four children (12-year-old seventh-grader Khalif, 9-year-old fourth-grader Camille, 7-year-old second-grader Cimone, 5-year-old kindergartener Corinne) and a 10-month-old puppy, Kross. For Rhodes, quarantine with a large family is easier said than done. Continue reading ...

More time at home, less time with peers. How this NoDa family balances virtual school.

In the spring, “there were many tears and frustration” at this home. So what now?

Kati Mayo is a wife and a mother to two children, a high school sophomore and a fifth grader. Mayo and her husband are fortunate to have continued to work — with some furloughed weeks. Continue reading ...

For this family: Hybrid of in-person/virtual classes and a school under construction

Will the children be able to maintain social distancing, keep their masks on?

Billie Vuckovich and her wife, Tambra Nipper, have been together for 13 years and married for six. They’re the proud mothers of two daughters, 7-year-old Emmala and 4-year-old Zoey. Both parents are feeling the effects of having their children at home while juggling remote work. Continue reading ...

This story was originally published August 16, 2020 at 8:39 AM.

Jessica Swannie

The Charlotte Observer

Jessica is a writer fueled by coffee, cookies and long walks in the Magic Kingdom. She’s often found exploring the culinary scene (mostly pasta) and traveling. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram @jessicaswannie.