As you know, COVID-19 cases are rising at an alarming rate around the country, in our state, in our county and in our own local community.
It is with great disappointment and frustration that we have had to announce once again that our schools will continue remote learning, with some exceptions, through Nov. 13, when we will reevaluate based on health department guidance and our local population’s metrics.
As we have stated from the very beginning, we have one guiding principle — the safety and well-being of our students, staff and school community. This means not just protecting the physical health of our community, but the academic well-being, the social and emotional well-being, and the overall well-being of our school district.
Every single one of us wants nothing more than to have our kids and teachers in school, in person. We know the huge burden remote learning has placed on our parents, our staff and our students, and we are so grateful for the hard work and adaptability we have witnessed throughout our district.
School board members are volunteers, elected to serve you by being the best possible stewards of public funds and weighing and voting on the decisions that affect our school community. We are your neighbors; our children are your children’s classmates.
We have spent countless hours weighing issues like local disease spread, the guidance of health experts and the experiences of other similar schools in our area, including the incidence, transmission and resulting quarantine of hundreds of teachers, support staff and families due to COVID-19.
We know no decisions made by a superintendent or board will be universally welcomed; and we agonize daily over the decisions we must make.
While some districts decided to close for the whole semester, and others have opened and then shut down, our initial six-week remote start was intended to give our students and staff the necessary time to learn the health and safety protocols to return to learn in-person while also establishing a strong foundation for remote learning.
Since our local health metrics began rising dramatically, we have taken things in two-week intervals to allow our district to reopen the minute health guidance dictates it is safe to do so.
Other school districts are making different decisions for a whole host of reasons that might include different space configurations, smaller student bodies, different local infection metrics and much more. In the end, our superintendent and this school board make decisions based on the best scientific data available — and in light of how we can best fulfill our mission as both educators and protectors of the students in our care.
We know some members of our community are frustrated and others are angry. Even when the emails and comments are hurtful and disrespectful, we read every one of them. You are heard and we take all aspects of this issue into account with every difficult decision. We understand and share your passion to meet the needs of your students.
Our district has accomplished truly remarkable things under Superintendent Dan Bridges’ leadership, including being recognized as the unit school district with the largest number of exemplary schools in our state. Our school district’s commitment to equity and our progress in closing achievement gaps has been lauded by our state superintendent of schools and our curriculum for social and emotional well-being has received national acclaim.
The same leaders who accomplished this are making the best possible decisions now, even in these most challenging of times.
There’s one thing we know for sure: this district is and always has been exceptional because of our partnership with our community. We need your continued honest feedback and the passion with which you advocate for your children and students. Each decision we make as a school district comes from our single-minded dedication to ensuring the future of our students.
However, overcoming the challenges of this time can only be successful with the collective efforts of each member of our community.
Kristin Fitzgerald is the president of the Naperville School District 203 Board of Education.