Teachers sign petitions calling on CMS to begin with remote learning

As Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools leaders weigh whether to hold partial in-person instruction this fall, two staff petitions are calling on the district to choose remote-only instruction as the county remains a hotspot for COVID-19.

The school board is scheduled to vote Wednesday afternoon on which plan to pursue for the return to classes this fall. Under an executive order issued by Gov. Roy Cooper Tuesday, schools can either choose Plan B, of moderate social distancing, or Plan C, which would mean exclusively virtual instruction.

Collectively, the two petitions calling on CMS to choose Plan C have drawn nearly 700 signatures overnight. They said that while they understood the burdens of remote learning, the safety of students and educators would be at risk given lingering questions about the safety and implementation of a hybrid model.

“Most educators have training in child development and understand the ways in which a virtual environment hinders the social and emotional growth of children,” one petition said. “However, we prioritize the LIVES of all, children and adults, over a halfhearted, unrealistic, and tremendously concerning attempt at normalcy.”

Teachers said that they did not feel like they had enough input into the decision making at the statewide level, and that they hoped to make their voices heard to CMS. The district earlier sent out a survey gauging teachers’ willingness to return to in-person work.

Roughly 88% of respondents said they would keep their current school assignment and report in-person to work if told to. Other options were to request a leave of absence or an alternate work arrangement for medical reasons, or resign or retire from the district.

Kerry Tousignant, a school counselor at Charlotte East Language Academy, said that the survey options were limited and that because it came out before Cooper announced his new order, it was difficult to respond without any concrete information on reopening.

“There was no option for ‘my answer depends on the Governor’s guidance,’ no place for feedback, and many staff didn’t feel comfortable submitting it before the governor even announced his plan, “ she said.

Tousignant said that she was concerned that even a partial return to school could lead to a spike in infections in the fall, resulting a sudden and unexpected change to full remote learning with no time to prepare.

“That kind of sudden and more restrictive change can be emotionally exhausting for students and adults alike,” she said.

Stephen Hayes, a teacher at Southwest Middle School who authored one of the petitions, said that he and his colleagues do not think a remote option is a permanent solution, but that it would be the safest way to begin the school year.

“If it made sense to close schools in March, and we have higher rates now than we did then, why would we reopen under these circumstances?” he said.

While Cooper’s order established a hybrid model as the statewide baseline, he left the option to choose a fully remote return to school up to individual districts, depending on their local metrics.

CMS earlier presented three plans for the return to school. The hybrid model would segment most grades into three groups that would rotate through one week of in-person instruction followed by two weeks of remote learning.

Mecklenburg County currently has more than 15,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19, in addition to 168 deaths, the highest in the state in both metrics. The petition writers said that the high number of cases was a clear indicator that CMS could not safely resume in-person instruction, as the movement of students and staff across the county risked further increasing the disease’s spread.

“If this ‘experiment’ of reopening the schools within CMS goes awry, we risk further taxing hospital capacity, putting not only ourselves and CMS students at risk, but all Charlotte and Mecklenburg residents,” another wrote.

This story was originally published July 15, 2020 at 11:31 AM.