CMS approves distance learning, remote work plan for NC-mandated coronavirus closure

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools will not introduce new course material to students, providing only supplemental, optional learning material during the two-week closure of schools under Gov. Roy Cooper’s executive order.

The board unanimously approved the move during an emergency meeting Monday. The district will also begin transitioning to a remote work policy for employees who did not need to be physically present to perform their duties.

And the board voted to move spring break back to its original date. CMS moved up the start of spring break on Friday to March 23, to help reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. But Cooper’s order closing all schools through March 30 made the change unnecessary.

All board-appointed committees, such as the equity committee and the bond oversight committee, will stop meeting indefinitely, Board Chair Elyse Dashew said.

“We’re reinventing how we do public education right now,” Dashew said. “We’re putting together what we can while awaiting more guidance.”

Superintendent Earnest Winston said that staff had been working for weeks to develop a transition plan, but many decisions were dependent on further guidance from the state.

“The questions we’re raising are the same that others are asking,” Winston said. “We’re grappling with this across the state.”

‘A dramatic and traumatic time’

Starting this week, students will have access to supplemental learning material and opportunities provided by CMS teachers, chief academic officer Brian Kingsley said. The lessons will not be graded or mandatory, Kingsley said, and will not be used to introduce new academic material and subjects to students.

“Part of our plan is to have weekly check-ins,” Kingsley said. “We understand this is a dramatic and traumatic time. We will be checking in on who they are as human beings too, and providing them all the socio-emotional supports that may be necessary.”

The district is waiting on guidance from the state, Kingsley said, and also needs to assess accommodations for students with disabilities or who are English language learners before it can move ahead with further instruction.

Kingsley also said that because some students do not have regular access to the Internet, the district will provide printed packets of the supplemental material at the designated lunch pick-up spots.

School leaders have been asked to survey the student body to see what is needed, Kingsley said. The district can distribute a number of WiFi hotspots, he said, and other companies like Spectrum have offered free WiFi to families who need it.

Deputy Superintendent Matt Hayes said that all grades from prior to the closure would be entered by Thursday.

The district will also transition to a remote work policy by the end of the business day Tuesday.

Christine Pejot, the district’s chief human resources officer, said employees will have Tuesday to gather their belongings and get ready for remote work. If an employee does not need to report to their office to be ready for remote work, they will not be required to, she said.

“Things will look different and feel different,” Pejot said. “I’m confident our employees can successfully pull this off.”

Leave policies will remain unchanged, Pejot said. The only employees who will work onsite are the ones whose jobs require it, such as those staffing meal deliveries, she said.

Any employees who do not have laptops or other devices and who need them will be assigned one, Pejot said.

An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated Christine Pejot’s title. She is the district’s chief human resources officer.

This story was originally published March 16, 2020 at 9:38 PM.