“This is not and will not be on the hands of the school district,” said board president AnnaMarie Knorr. “We are the only entity that is looking at data and has made changes to our operations. The city is still holding community events, the restaurants are open, the bars are open ....The message we’re sending to our kids is school is not important." File photo

Students in the Maricopa Unified School District will return to their school classrooms no sooner than Feb. 1.

The district’s Governing Board on Thursday night again declined to follow the recommendation of Superintendent Dr. Tracey Lopeman, opting to extend at-home learning through at least Jan. 29. The board voted, 3-1, for the Feb. 1 return to classrooms, with Torri Anderson dissenting.

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Board president AnnaMarie Knorr said she believes the district and its schools are doing everything possible to deal with the virus and mitigate its effects. Her issue, she said, lies with the larger community and its lack of urgency to get the virus under control.

“This is not and will not be on the hands of the school district,” she said. “We are the only entity that is looking at data and has made changes to our operations. The city is still holding community events, the restaurants are open, the bars are open. You can play flag football, you can go to the state parks, you can go to the park, you can play golf. You can do anything you want to do that was available pre-COVID, except go to school.

“So, the message we’re sending to our kids is school is not important,” she added. “I understand COVID is real. People are getting sick and they are dying. Don’t get me wrong. I feel for them. I don’t want to catch COVID. I mask up. I’m concerned. But the message we are sending is that school is at the bottom of the list. And if we can’t have graduations at the end of the year, it’s not going to be because of the school districts, it’s going to be because of everything else going on in this world.”

Anderson sought a continuation of distance-only learning through March 5 to give the current spike in positive cases throughout the city a chance to subside. She said it also would allow schools to get cases under control enough to allow in-person celebrations and graduations at the end of the school year.

District administration had recommended continuing at-home learning through Jan. 15 and a return to the classroom Jan. 19 following the Martin Luther King Day holiday.

Lopeman indicated it could be until spring break before all district teachers and staff can be “fully vaccinated” – a process which takes about 42 days from initial dose. Once the initial vaccination is given, a second dose is given 28 days later, and Lopeman said county health officials have told her that it takes 12-14 days to be fully vaccinated after the second dose of the vaccine is administered.

That prompted Anderson’s recommendation that the schools continue at-home learning until after spring break, when all teachers and staff who wanted the vaccine would have time to go through the process.

“I’m a planner, I like to plan how I want to see the end of the school year go, and we have to make those tough decisions now,” she said. “At the end of the school year, I want to see in-person celebrations. I want to see high school graduation. I want to see us be able to visit our classrooms again. And in my opinion, in order for that to happen, we need to buckle down and stay in distance learning.

“I know it’s a sacrifice,” she continued. “I know it’s not a popular opinion, but that would be my hope for this community and this district. I think going week by week is extremely disruptive. I think just going through next week is too short. Parents need time to plan, teachers need time to plan. I want to see us have a regular end to the school year and I don’t think we’ll get that if we go back to in person right now.”

She said her primary concern was not only for the safety of staff and students but over the lack of consistency from being in class one day and then in quarantine for two weeks, then back for a few days and then quarantined again.

Board vice president Ben Owens agreed when it came to providing consistency for parents, students and teachers. He also said he understands the challenges arising for families from a fluctuating schedule.

“The week by week is difficult,” he said. “I also understand the challenges for some of our families that may not have really strong internet, may not have strong family support. It’s tough to have the kids at home. I get that. It’s tough.”

In other business, the board chose its leadership for the coming year with Owens’ election as president by a unanimous, 4-0, vote. Jim Jordan nominated Knorr to serve as vice president even though Anderson voiced a desire to serve in that role. But she was not nominated and Knorr was chosen in a 3-1 vote with Anderson dissenting.