ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — The urgency to finalize plans shifts to high gear as Orange County Public Schools is just one of several school districts that will be going over fall reopening plans on Tuesday. However, what has drawn attention Tuesday morning is that Orange County Public Schools has proposed pushing back the school year to August 21.
What You Need To Know
- School board to hold meeting at noon on Tuesday about reopening
- School board to propose opening school year August 21
- Teachers want officials to reopen using CDC recommendations
- Union president says some teachers quit or retired for their safety
- RELATED: Orange County Schools Widen Back-to-School Options for Students
Thousands of Central Florida educators are calling on state and local leaders to ensure schools reopen safely.
A post on Facebook from the Orange County Classroom Teachers Association is calling out Florida's Commissioner of Education for what members say was a tone-deaf executive order demanding schools must reopen in the fall.
The post was signed by various teachers and education association presidents in areas like Seminole, Orange, and Volusia counties.
It says a statewide order to reopen all schools without consideration of community spread and adequate planning goes against CDC recommendations.
And educators say they do not support an option like face-to-face learning that, they say in the post, will expose the school community to the coronavirus.
At noon on Tuesday, members of the Orange County school board will meet to discuss their reopening plan. Attendance inside the school board meeting will be limited. Parents and teachers can call in or email comments as well.
However, what has drawn attention is the proposal to push the start of the school year, which is currently slated for August 10.
"School board meeting today at noon will include a proposal to push back the start of school to August 21," Lorena Arias, the assistant director of the Media Relations department of Orange County Public Schools, wrote in a press release.
The district is providing three options for parents — including sending students back to in-person instruction, stay at home through virtual learning full-time, or a new model called LaunchEd that would be virtual but follow traditional school hours and provide access to teachers and services that are offered in classrooms.
President of the Orange County Classroom Teachers Association Wendy Doromal supports distancing learning with current high case numbers, saying some teachers have quit and retired early because they are concerned about safety.
"Every single teacher I know wants to be face to face with their students; they know that's the best way. You can make up academic aids. You can't get a life back. That's the bottom line," Doromal said.
School officials in Orange County are considering daily temperature checks, additional handwashing stations, and testing all staff for coronavirus.
The Department of Education has to approve any plans before the distict moving forward.
Sign up now for one of our newsletters that will show up in your inbox every weekday at 1 p.m. The newsletters highlight the most important stories of the day that you need to know for your area.