By Tom Tolen / news@whmi.com


The scheduled start of the 20-21 school year is less than a month away, and in the face of the coronavirus pandemic, the Brighton school board is considering a plan that would involve both in-school and online learning.

The plan, announced by interim Superintendent Laura Surrey at Monday’s Board of Education meeting, would involve four days of classroom instruction for the first semester - on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays - with Wednesdays consisting of at-home online learning. An exception is that the first week of school is to consist of half-days only. While a survey indicated that 50% of staff approved of what was referred to as the “2-1-2” model, the large number of teachers who spoke at call-to-the-public were not in favor of that approach. Rather, the teachers were strongly in favor of exclusively online learning, fearing that COVID-19 would be brought into the classroom and pose a risk to both students and teachers.

Surrey told the board and virtual audience at the online meeting that, “These are challenging and difficult days,” adding that the school administration and board “want to get a plan in place to ensure a safe and successful” start of school for students, parents and staff. Among the planned protocols are that face masks must be worn in all classrooms, hallways and common areas in grades pre-kindergarten through grade 12, unless the child cannot wear one for medical reasons. An exception would be in K-5 classrooms where students remain in the room all day and do not come into close contact with students in anther class. Masks would not be required during lunch. Teachers would be required to wear masks at all times except for meals, and everyone - pre-K to 12th grade students, staff and bus drivers - would have to wear a mask during transportation times. In grades junior kindergarten to 6, students would learn in small groups of “classroom cohorts” — defined as students who participate in a class or other activity as a group, thereby reducing the “points of contact.” Special education and encore classes would be taught in cohort classrooms, except for physical education. Lunches would be brought to the classrooms.

In the proposal, block scheduling is proposed at Brighton High School, Scranton Middle School and The Bridge Alternative High School, with “block” referring to the fact that half of the scheduled classes would take an entire day with extended class time, with the other half of the student's classes taking place the following day. The philosophy of this approach is that it reduces the number of transitions between classes by half. Another option discussed Monday night is the Brighton Virtual Academy that is currently in the process of being developed, which will be 100% online. The program will comply full with state standards for online learning, with the aim of providing a good educational program while helping the Brighton Area Schools maintain current enrollment.

Teachers who spoke at the online meeting were virtually unanimous in their opposition to resuming in-classroom learning, saying although they ideally would be in favor of in-school learning, the district isn’t ready, and there are too many dangers associated with exposure to the coronavirus. Telling the board “Our voices have not been heard,” Brighton High School teacher Stephanie Carroll said that teachers have been kept in the dark since the pandemic broke out and haven’t been a part of the process of developing a protocol for returning to school. Carroll further said that social distancing for students in the small Brighton classrooms “is unachievable,” and said it will be hard to find enough teachers with a “compromised staff”. She also asked whether the Brighton Virtual Academy would be outsourced and if teachers will be required to use sick time if they get the coronavirus. Parent Kimberly Davis expressed the fear that if the schools open their doors, “many families will suffer the loss of a loved one,” while Christina Kafkakis, the mother of four Brighton students, expressed concern about overcrowding on buses with social distancing requirements, and suggested the start of school be pushed back to September.

The board took no action on current plans for the start of school, but said administration will continue to refine them and will listen to parents and staff in developing the ultimate plan of action that will be followed.