During a tour of a metro Atlanta high school Tuesday, U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos reiterated her message that students need to be back in school, but she modified it by saying that doesn’t mean all of them must be in a classroom.
She chose Forsyth County Schools, north of Atlanta, as a model for the message that she said she and President Donald Trump intended. DeVos has pushed for schools to reopen, and Trump has threatened to withhold federal funding from schools that do not, as many, including the largest districts in metro Atlanta, chose reopening online as the safest route during the pandemic.
Like many school districts that already have opened their classrooms, Forsyth let its more than 50,000 students choose between in-person and virtual learning. The district is also offering an a la carte option to middle and high school students. They can attend in person part time and online part time, based on each course, and DeVos said parents deserve such choices.
Credit: ALYSSA.POINTER@AJC.COM
Credit: ALYSSA.POINTER@AJC.COM
“I think perhaps there’s been a little bit of a misunderstanding that going back to school meant 100% of the students had to be present 100% of the time,” she said at Forsyth Central High School Tuesday afternoon. “No, the expectation is that there’s 100% learning in the way that’s going to work for each family.”
Last month Forsyth schools superintendent Jeff Bearden participated in a panel at the White House about how to safely reopen schools, saying he preferred to begin the school year with face-to-face instruction.
Georgia schools tend to open earlier than the rest of the nation, and that is one reason that the beginning of the fall semester in nearby Paulding and Cherokee counties made headlines across the country and internationally.
Some high schools there had to close soon after opening due to COVID-19 infections and the resulting quarantines of students and teachers.
Decisions about reopening have stoked controversy across metro Atlanta, with some teachers protesting against a return to the classroom and some parents protesting for it.
Credit: ALYSSA.POINTER@AJC.COM
Credit: ALYSSA.POINTER@AJC.COM
Forsyth’s Emily Reiser, who was part of Tuesday’s district event and whose high school students are intellectually disabled, said online schooling is inadequate. “Just for their mental well-being, their mental health, it’s very important for them to come into the school building,” she said in an interview with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
With its approach, Forsyth has managed to reduce the number of students in buildings and therefore its class sizes, though not in every room.
Michelle “Missy” Pounds was among parents protesting outside the high school during DeVos’ visit. Pounds said two of her children at a magnet high school had to take a class in person — introduction to criminal law — because it was not offered online. She said there were too many students in the class to follow social distancing guidelines.
Credit: ALYSSA.POINTER@AJC.COM
Credit: ALYSSA.POINTER@AJC.COM
“It’s a rosy picture, but they’re only looking at the good parts,” she said of the DeVos visit. “They had no choice but to go in person.”
Even so, her youngest, in eighth grade, opted for online studies, asking if she could attend one course in person. Pounds let her, saying the drama class is in a larger space, with fewer students and that all of them wear masks, which are encouraged but not required by the school district.
About the Author
