OAISD leaders talk school return at chamber meeting

HOLLAND — Officials from the Ottawa Area Intermediate School District joined the West Coast Chamber of Commerce to discuss plans for returning to school amid the COVID-19 pandemic on Tuesday morning, Aug. 4.

Superintendent Pete Haines and assistant superintendent for instruction Kyle Mayer joined chamber president Jane Clark to discuss some of the issues facing schools as they prepare for the new academic year.

Haines began by saying it’s difficult to predict how the year will play out given how quickly things can change during the novel coronavirus pandemic, but as of now, schools are preparing for a return to the classroom.

“What I do know for certain is that we are currently in Phase 4 of the governor’s Return to School Safe Start Plan,” he said. “That means if today was the first day of school, we would be able to go back face-to-face, provided we can satisfy several health and safety requirements.

“I also know that if today was the first day of school, we would have some parents, some families and some staff who would not feel comfortable returning to face-to-face. As school leaders, we appreciate, we respect and we intend to honor those varied perspectives by providing options as we are able.”

A bright spot of the planning process, Mayer said, has been collaboration between districts — public, private and charter schools — on providing options for in-person or remote learning.

“There’s a strong desire to be consistent,” Mayer said. “All of our districts are working toward offering face-to-face as an option to caregivers and students, so long as we are in Phase 4.

“If you read headlines and look around the state of Michigan, there are, within individual counties, school districts that are differing on that. Some might be fully remote, with others face-to-face. We do have a lot of consistency (locally).”

The OAISD and local districts will lean on the OCDPH for responding to COVID-19 cases in schools if and when they come.

“We are relying heavily, almost exclusively, on their directions and that of the CDC as we design instructional programs for students,” Haines said of the OAISD and OCDPH partnership. “They’re producing a document … that lists a flowchart on how they will respond and direct us on quarantining or even closing classrooms or whole schools (in the event of a positive case).”

Mayer said that equity is an issue when looking at remote learning and education in general.

“Devices and internet are very often the first thing we think of in terms of equity and remote learning,” he said. “But when we really think about the needs of students of color, from low income backgrounds, for whom English is their second language, with disabilities or other groups such as homeless students, a device and WiFi does not completely solve the equity issue.

“It really deserves further conversation and our sustained focus as a community. You can look for equity in education to be a focus of the OAISD going forward beyond the pandemic.”

He added that the OAISD is working with member districts to provide a consistent remote curriculum for families looking to choose remote learning.

The OAISD and local districts will have COVID-19 preparedness plans published on their websites on or before Aug. 17. Many districts, such as Holland and Zeeland, have already begun to share their plans.

A recording of the discussion from Tuesday morning will be posted on the West Coast Chamber website.

— Contact reporter Mitchell Boatman at mboatman@hollandsentinel.com. Follow him on Twitter @SentinelMitch.