As Pullman School Board members weigh the educational well-being of students against community safety, their recent decision to begin hybrid classes in January has drawn strong responses from parents and school staff — many calling for a quicker timeline while others urge caution going into the holidays amid skyrocketing COVID-19 infections nationwide.
The board plans to hold a work session Tuesday to clarify reopening plans after two previous discussions ended in an emotional 3-2 vote on Wednesday to start phasing in hybrid in-person classes on Jan. 4.
Community members have announced a demonstration supporting reopening in-person classes for Monday outside the Neill Public Library. Pullman Radio News coverage of the contentious board discussions has drawn hundreds of comments both for and against the proposed start date.
“We have spent a lot of time meeting with various agencies regarding health and safety protocols,” Pullman Schools Superintendent Bob Maxwell said Oct. 28. “Our primary goal is to get students back, but get them back safely.”
State health officials this week released a new report suggesting most elementary-age students could return to in-person classes without significantly impacting community infection rates if specific health countermeasures were enacted. Outgoing Whitman County Public Health Director Troy Henderson on Oct. 15 also issued support for re-opening elementary school instruction in Pullman, despite local infection rates that place the county in the state’s “high-risk” category.
Pullman school officials have adopted a hybrid learning plan that reintroduces younger students in several stages, starting with kindergarten and moving up to 5th grade. New grades would be introduced if infection rates remained below set levels and in consultation with health officials. The plan would also allow families to keep their children in distance learning if they wanted.
All board members voiced support for the phased plan, but have disagreed over the timeline. School officials had proposed starting kindergarteners as early as Nov. 9.
Board members Jim Evermann, Nathan Roberts and Amanda Tanner voted Wednesday to hold off on hybrid classes until January in hopes of strengthening online learning for all grades, offering families more predictable planning and getting through the potentially risky holiday gatherings of the coming weeks.
Board members Allison Munch-Rotolo and Susan Weed called for an earlier start date, citing declines in student performance as well as a desire to improve equitable access the social and educational support of in-person instruction.
Roberts and Weed exchanged pointed arguments during recent board discussions. Watch replays of those discussions here (Oct. 28) and here (Nov. 4). You can also read previous coverage from Pullman Radio News, which notes that Weed is a co-owner of the station, here and here.
Roberts recently posted a statement on the decision here. Weed, who called the January timeline “stupid” and indignantly adjourned the Nov. 4 meeting, later apologized for her demeanor during the discussion.
“I understand some feel my behavior last night was obnoxious — I apologize,” she wrote on Facebook, “but I care deeply for our kids and want the best for all of them. Sorry I got so passionate and upset.”
School officials have voiced concerns about student performance throughout the past two months of distance learning, reporting about 250 high schoolers receiving a failing grade in at least one class. Other priorities included reliable internet access as well as mental well-being and social development.
“I believe that we absolutely have a moral obligation to begin opening for our youngest learners,” Munch-Rotolo said. “They are the most in need.”
(Maxwell noted the district has served about 160 students in person since summer without any major issues. Those students, mostly special education or non-English speaking students, worked in small groups with health precautions.)
Other board members said they could not see the benefit of sending students back to class as COVID-19 cases hit new records nationwide and local reports put Pullman Regional Hospital at capacity for ICU patients. At least 19 people have died locally since Oct. 6. Henderson has also warned of a very challenging winter of high local infection rates.
“I want my kids to go back to school and I’m comfortable with the safety protocols that have been put in place,” Tanner said, “but this is not about me or any other single person. At this time, I’m not completely convinced it’s in the best interest of the community for our kids to return to school immediately.”
Roberts argued reopening now risked new disruption as students jump between online and hybrid schedules. He said a January opening allows families to prepare and commits the district to improving distance instruction for both younger students who may opt out of returning as well as secondary students who are still prohibited from in-person instruction for the time being.
“Pullman is not the typical town,” he added. “We have many causes for concern.”
School officials also shared a survey of about 1,100 elementary student parents from late October. The results indicated most K-2nd grade parents, about 60-80 percent, supported returning to in-person classes. Parents of 3rd-5th graders were about evenly split on in-person vs. distance or undecided.
Evermann said a recent survey of school staff showed a fairly even split between those interested in starting soon and those preferring to wait until January.
“To start, then go on holiday, then start again,” he said, “I think would be very disruptive.”
Luke Conley, president of the Pullman Education Association, in an email to Whitman County Watch acknowledged divided opinions among teachers and school staff. He wrote that teachers share many of the conflicting concerns about student needs and the various risks involved in the logistics of in-person instruction.
“Many teachers are relieved by the board’s decision, some are disappointed, and most feel a little bit of both,” he wrote. “I’m grateful that the school board is carefully weighing the health and safety of students, staff, and the Pullman community as they make these difficult decisions.”
The district has recently expanded its substitute teacher recruiting efforts amid fears they would not have the staffing to cover sudden illnesses or quarantines. Conley wrote that the district had also taken important steps to take care of at-risk employees and collaborated with union representatives on protecting students and staff, but policy “can only do so much.”
“When students come back, it’s likely that many teachers will need to make a choice between risking their lives and risking their livelihoods,” he wrote. “I think that’s important for our community to keep in mind.”
The day after the board’s vote, state Department of Health officials released a new study that models infection rates in schools. That study concluded that common health countermeasures like symptom screening, mask-wearing, social distancing and other increased sanitation practices seemed to prevent extensive outbreaks in classroom environments. Read that report here and watch the briefing.
Deputy Secretary of Health Lacy Fehrenbach said the state had seen 42 outbreaks in schools since last spring, resulting in 110 linked cases overall. About half of cases were students and half were staff. Just four schools had outbreaks of five or more cases, mostly in “high-risk” transmission areas.
“The infection rate for children does so far tend to be less than what’s happening in the surrounding community,” she said. “We fortunately are not seeing the large outbreaks that I think many of us feared might happen with a return to school.”
Officials cited a COVID-19 school infection dashboard from Brown University that has tracked more than 1.4 million in-person students across more than 5,100 schools. That research shows just 1-3 percent of schools reporting outbreaks of five or more cases. But also noted that school outbreaks tended to reflect the spread in the surrounding community.
“We are concerned about the rising cases we’re seeing [statewide],” Fehrenbach said. “When we are in a status where we’re seeing a rise in cases, that’s not the ideal time to be expanding learning.”
Health experts emphasized that health countermeasures like symptom screening and masking played a huge role in limiting school outbreaks. Transmission rates went up significantly without those steps. The state now requires those precautions at any schools offering in-person instruction.
Because older middle and high school students present a higher COVID-19 transmission risk, she said, getting them back to in-person classes will take a much larger effort to control community infection rates.
“We’re going to really have to come together as communities and as a state to drive down our rates,” she said. “That’s going to mean making choices about what we do. We’re going to have to limit some of our social interactions and really focus on safer, smaller gatherings.”
Officials said some school districts have started introducing screen testing of students and staff to take more proactive steps to contain infections. Pullman school board members have asked the district to explore the feasibility of rapid testing in schools. Those efforts may be discussed at Tuesday’s work session.
Pullman school officials also released a series of videos on health precautions and protocols this past week addressing social distancing, hand washing, masks and other practices.
Maxwell wrote in an email to Whitman County Watch that any reopening timeline has certain benefits or challenges, but staff have received extensive training on the latest health standards. He said district officials will update standards and practices as those guidelines evolve.
“We have implemented the recommend protocols and purchased and distributed PPE gear,” he wrote. “I believe we are well-prepared for in-person hybrid learning beginning with the youngest learners.”
Very thorough and well written. I appreciate all of the links and the coverage from every angle. Thanks!