HOLYOKE — In a nonbinding unanimous vote during the Holyoke School Committee’s broadcasted meeting Friday, the committee recommended that the school district move to remote-only learning for the start of the new school year this fall.
However, Alberto Vázquez Matos, the superintendent of schools and state-appointed receiver, will have the final say on whether the district adopts all-remote learning or a hybrid of online and in-person teaching.
At Friday’s meeting, Matos said the “trauma behind the pandemic and instructional issues” is at the heart of the plans for the incoming school year, which starts Sept. 8 for Grades 1 through 12, and Sept. 14 for pre-kindergarten and kindergarten.
“The reality is that in many school districts, including Holyoke, students will likely return to schools with serious gaps,” he said. “And their learning and retention and unique social-emotional needs will need to have to be addressed. So, that’s really at the forefront of our work.”
Holyoke’s district leadership plan for the fall, “A Plan to Welcome Back All Students,” entails a hybrid learning plan that would bring 50% of students back to school. Each classroom would fit 11 to 14 students with 6 feet of social distancing. School weeks would consist of five days with two days of in-person learning and three days of remote learning.
Matos said the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education has required school districts to create draft plans of three school year models, including in-person, hybrid learning, and all remote learning.
If a hybrid model of learning were adopted for Holyoke Public Schools, the school district would adhere to health and safety protocols such as students, staff and teachers wearing face coverings, socially distancing at least 6 feet apart, available testing for COVID-19, contact tracing, and improved cleaning of school facilities, as well as checking for COVID-19 symptoms, he said.
At-large committee member Erin Brunelle criticized the push to reopen school buildings while other city and state government buildings remain closed due to COVID-19 health concerns, including City Hall and the central offices of Holyoke Public Schools.
“Mind you, we’re also conducting this meeting virtually,” she added. “I reached out to the Holyoke Teachers Association and invited Peter McAndrew, their president, to join us in this meeting tonight. How could we even think about discussing such an issue without their presence? Our teachers are not given the voice that they deserve.”
Brunelle followed up with a motion to suspend normal meeting rules to allow McAndrew to speak at the meeting, which was approved by the committee.
McAndrew said he’s heard from teachers that “the anxiety is palpable” about reopening schools.
“Our responsibility at this point, I really feel, is that we keep students, our educators and the community at large safe,” he said.
A recent poll of Holyoke teachers and paraprofessionals showed that 200 educators believe health benchmarks need to be met before school buildings reopen. Only two to three educators surveyed disagreed, he said.
“I just don’t think that we’re ready at this point to reopen … I think we need to partner together to make this school safe for our kids.”
Chris Goudreau can be reached at cgoudreau@gazettenet.com.