The Cordova School Board will review options for reopening at a Wednesday, Aug. 12 meeting. The board will also hear public comment at the meeting, which will be conducted via the video-conferencing platform Zoom.
“I think it’s really important for students to try to get some in-person time, to learn from each other, to learn from their teachers, to socialize,” Mayor Clay Koplin said. “So, I hope that there’s a path to having some kind of in-person schooling framework that recognizes that some additional precautions are necessary.”
In a release, the Cordova School District outlined three options: online instruction that would eventually transition to in-person instruction; in-person instruction minimizing the number of students present in the building at one time; and a combination of both online and in-person instruction. A survey published by the school district found 30.08 percent of respondents “plan to send student(s) back to the school building” when possible.
Supporting the health and safety of students and staff, as well as the community at large, has been one of the principal goals of the planning process, Superintendent Alex Russin said.
“Our goal is to get students and staff in the building just as soon as we can, in as safe a manner as we can,” Russin said. “Unfortunately, that’s not a straightforward, easy thing to consider.”
A survey of 3,500 teachers in 39 school districts across Alaska found that over 75 percent were uncomfortable with the idea of fully reopening schools. The study was conducted by the Alaska affiliate of the National Education Association. The NEA is the U.S.’s largest labor union, representing approximately 2.29 million public school teachers and other educators.
“Clearly, Alaska teachers and education support professionals have significant reservations about returning to the classroom this fall,” said NEA-Alaska President Tom Klaameyer in a release. “Until proper safety measures are in place to ensure our students, educators and families are protected from the COVID-19 coronavirus, we need to slow down and reevaluate our approach on a district-by-district level with considerable input from the Alaska Department of Education and Early Childhood Development and Chief Medical Officer Dr. Anne Zink.”
At a July 23 meeting of the Alaska House Education Committee, Zink said that many of the state’s children are at higher risk of severe illness from the novel coronavirus due to smoking or due to conditions like obesity. Between one-third and one-half of Alaska children are overweight or obese, and, in 2017, 10.9 percent of teenage students reported smoking during the previous month, Zink said.
“These are unprecedented times, and Alaska’s families, children, teachers, school districts and Department of Education are all navigating uncharted waters,” said Rep. Harriet Drummond, D-Anchorage, and Education Committee co-chair. “It’s reassuring that everyone understands, first and foremost, our priority is the health and wellbeing of our children and teachers. We cannot expect our kids to learn if they do not feel safe.”
