The kids are NOT okay.

A departure from 5 days of in person learning is causing a large proportion of students to struggle. Kids are struggling academically, socially and emotionally. This current model of learning was implemented as a temporary solution but very few changes have been made to remedy the issues experienced since the start. A survey was sent out to parents in the fall soliciting feedback due to the obvious challenges being experienced by families. The results of this survey were not fully disclosed and as a result of this survey, no changes were made to the instruction schedule.  

This prompted a poll to be conducted on social media that garnered 114 responses from parents. 42 respondents (37%) indicated that their child is struggling, while an additional 49 respondents (42%) responded that improvements need to be made. Only 23 (20%) indicated that the current system is working well for them.  Students across the district lack a consistent schedule of core subjects like reading, writing and mathematics.  NJ law mandates 4 hours of instruction to count as a day of school.  Our district utilizes 'independent learning time' to fulfill this, with many students receiving 3 hours or less a day. 

While the hybrid-model was proposed as the safest option during this time, it would be naive to think that our students are only exposed to the students in their cohort. Families are forced to incur extra expenses to supplement childcare for the hours their children were previously in school. Many students attend large local fitness centers or other improvised centers during their virtual weeks.  There, students are gathered together students outside their cohorts and participate in other activities.  It is difficult to explain to a child why they are allowed to learn alongside other children at a fitness center but not in their own school. Extra curricular activities are operating normally around the county outside of the school system and children are exposed to other children in those settings as well. 

The school district has taken many steps to keep our students and teachers safe. These multi-faceted mitigation strategies should be continued, however, we will never be able to reach a zero-risk environment.  There will continue to be instances of illness in our community and schools, be it COVID, influenza or a number of other communicable diseases.  Schools, in our state and others, have consistently shown not to be significant sources of transmission. At this time, as COVID cases and hospitalizations continue to fall, it is critical to move forward by fully reopening our schools, especially to our youngest and most vulnerable learners, while still maintaining proper and effective safety measures. Local school districts such as East Amwell and Delaware Township have been having in person instruction 5 days a week since the fall.  Private schools within the County have also been operating on a near full time schedule.  Despite having more students in school for longer periods, these institutions had no evidence of higher rates of transmission.  Effective February 2021, Branchburg and Readington have implemented changes to their model that increases in person instructional time while FRSD has not even begun discussions on the topic.

Branchburg specifically has admitted that...

“it has become clear that many of our youngest learners are experiencing difficulty reaching their potential with the variations that a hybrid learning model brings. We believe that the changes we are making will provide greater academic support for our students, as well as make learning in a virtual environment more manageable for students at home. After a great deal of thought, a decision has been made to modify our program… The back-and-forth hybrid model will be discontinued and parents will be asked to choose a 5 day ‘fully virtual’ or ‘fully in-school’ option for their children.” 

This petition is intended to demand immediate action from the Flemington Raritan School District to begin reopening schools. 

By signing this petition, you support the Flemington-Raritan School District and Board of Education coming up with a proposal that gives families the choice of full virtual or full in person instruction.