As the debate continues to rage over whether schools should reopen this fall despite the coronavirus pandemic, Gov. Phil Murphy will announce later Wednesday that New Jersey’s public schools will have the option of starting the school year with no in-person classes if they meet certain criteria, NJ Advance Media has confirmed.
Murphy’s office told CBS News he “will announce a plan later today to facilitate remote learning as an option,” according to a report early Wednesday on “CBS This Morning.” A source with knowledge of the issue confirmed the report to NJ Advance Media.
New Jersey’s nearly 600 school districts will not be able to simply chose to go all-remote, the source said. Instead, the districts will need to show the state Department of Education the reasons why they can’t offer in-person classes at the start of the 2020-2021 school year and what they are doing to solve those problems.
“Districts are expected to continue to work with the DOE towards getting to the point where they can provide an in-person experience. Districts are expected to have to tell the department what hurdles to providing in-person education they are facing and a date they are working towards resolving those hurdles,” the source said. “The goal is still to have as much in-person learning as possible in the state.”
The CBS report featured schools in Elizabeth, one of the districts that defied state guidelines and submitted a school reopening plan with no in-person classes because local officials say they don’t not have enough teachers willing to return to classrooms.
Murphy is expected to make the formal announcement at his latest COVID-19 briefing in Trenton at 1 p.m. Kevin Dehmer, the state’s interim education commissioner, is slated to appear.
The move is a significant change in the guidelines originally proposed by the Murphy administration in June. After ending the last school year with three months of virtual learning, the state was requiring all of New Jersey’s 2,500 public schools to offer at least some in-person classes when the new academic year begins in the coming weeks — though with restrictions like masking and social distancing.
The state was also requiring districts to offer parents the option of all-remote learning for the children.
But there has been increasing pressure from some local officials, educators, and union leaders for schools to remain closed as COVID-19 continues to affect New Jersey — or at least to give districts the option to open all-remote.
Leaders of the state’s largest teacher union and groups representing school administrators issued a joint statement Wednesday night calling on Murphy and the state Department of Education to have all New Jersey schools open remotely in the fall over health concerns because of the virus.
“For months, New Jersey educators and administrators have been working tirelessly to find a way to safely bring students back into school buildings in September. Now, with less than a month remaining before schools are scheduled to reopen, it is time to reluctantly acknowledge that goal is simply not achievable,” said Richard Bozza, executive director of the New Jersey Association of School Administrators; Patricia Wright, executive director of the New Jersey Principals and Supervisors Association; and Marie Blistan, president of the New Jersey Education Association.
“Reopening schools for in-person instruction under the current conditions poses too great a risk to the health of students and schools staff,” they continued.
“We fully support and share the governor’s goal of moving to in-person instruction as soon as the science and data say we can do so responsibly and when the resources are available in our school buildings to do it safely,” the union leaders added.
Some educators and officials have warned that there may not be enough teachers to teach in-person classes because teachers won’t teach in person out of fear of contracting the virus.
The school board in Elizabeth — New Jersey’s fourth-largest municipality — voted Monday to begin the school year with all-remote classes, despite the state’s guidelines, because 375 of its teachers have said they will not physically return to school. The plan would need to be approved by the state.
On the other hand, many parents, officials, and President Donald Trump have been pushing for schools to reopen across the nation. Many argue that students don’t get the same education from online classes and many parents can’t be home because of work.
Murphy was asked Monday if parents and educators should expect school plans to change in New Jersey.
“No news to report on schools today,” the governor responded. .“We take all the inputs from all the stakeholders very seriously, and there’s, as I said before, enormous passion on all sides of this.”
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COVID-19, so far, has not had as major as impact on children compared to people who are older and have pre-existing conditions.
But opponents of returning to school say kids could pass the virus to teachers and administrators. They also argue it’s still unclear how the virus affects children.
A Fairleigh Dickinson University poll released last month found New Jerseyans are divided on the issue. The survey found 46% of Garden State adults say schools should reopen with protective measures, while 42% say students should continue with remote learning until there is a COVID-19 treatment or vaccine.
The uncertainty comes as New Jersey, once a coronavirus hotspot, sees its numbers continue to trend in the right direction. On Tuesday, the state reported 14 deaths related to COVID-19 and 498 new cases, while the rate of transmission remained below the key benchmark of 1 for the second straight day. Those numbers are down significantly from the state’s peak in mid-April.
But Murphy on Monday said it’s still too risky to allow restaurants to reopen for indoor dining, saying the idea of people sitting without masks inside without strong ventilation is still an issue.
He also continued to urge residents to keep social distancing and wearing masks to make sure the numbers don’t spike again and help prevent more death.
“Please don’t get complacent,” the governor said. “The virus is out there.”
Related: How N.J.‘s push to reopen schools devolved into chaos
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Kelly Heyboer may be reached at kheyboer@njadvancemedia.com.
Brent Johnson may be reached at bjohnson@njadvancemedia.com.
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