Will Central Florida students be able to return to school safely next month?
Every Florida school district is working on plans to bring students back to the classroom.
The question on many minds is if it can be done safely with the number of coronavirus cases increasing daily.
"I think it can be done, but I think every family has to make an individual decision, based on risk factors," Dr. Pinkal Patel said.
Patel, a Central Florida family physician, says families with at-risk people at home need to weigh all of the risks of potential exposure.
"Do you have any ill family members, or if you have any grandparents they might be in contact with that might get sick, have to take all of that into consideration," Patel said.
Patel says hand washing and social distancing are all vital inside the school atmosphere. Schools need to follow all CDC guidelines.
"The things that are absolutely necessary, I think masks, I know they're not mandated across the state, but I think that would be a must for me to send my child back to school," Patel said.
Patel said he had a conversation with his high school-aged son about going back to the classroom.
"He does not feel comfortable going back five days a week, so we'll probably do the hybrid or the virtual to start with and as numbers change, we'll reassess," Patel said.
"I don't think we'll forgive ourselves, or history will forgive us if we just rush to open these schools," Chardo Richardson, head of Seminole County's teacher union said.
Richardson said his members have concerns.
:A bit of a pickle we're in, where the teachers, the public school employees are concerned about their health, but they're also concerned about the education the kids are not getting at times," Richardson said.
He's glad there's an option for remote learning for safety's sake.