NOLA has higher case counts than they have EVER had before.. "every pediatric facility in the state is “absolutely full.” We need a virtual option.. even if only a camera in the classroom they could watch from home OR we need to be sure that children who are homeschooled do not forfeit their school placements so they can return to school when it is safe to do so.

A virtual option is also important for kids who are attending school but may have to miss school for extended periods of time due to COVID exposure. Will we be sending the kids home to isolate every time someone has a case..and how will those kids keep up? Please just ALLOW A VIRTUAL OPTION for now at least until cases go down.

A virtual option not only helps high-risk households who vaccinated all eligible household members AND diligently wear masks, but it even gives anti-vaccine and anti-mask people an option as well without putting the rest of the school population at higher risk.

It is also important to consider that many households are high-risk or have younger kids who can't get the vaccine yet. We KNOW this Delta thing is hitting us hard and our kids are getting sick and even vaccinated people are getting seriously ill. Our pediatric hospitals are FULL. We need a virtual option for the safety and wellbeing of our citizens.

Finally, IN NOLA if you don't accept the assigned school you forfeit your seat and it is another year or longer process to get back in IF you are lucky enough to get back in at all... this is always an issue, but especially for kids in specific education programs or HS students working on college prep. Losing that placement can cost them their opportunity to attend college in the future. Please allow a virtual option or hold spots for kids who will be forced to homeschool until it's safe for them to return. Putting a camera in the classroom and allowing kids to join and making them accountable for the work just as if they were physically there isn't that hard, we don't have to do it like it was last year, it could be WAY simpler.

To ask us to choose between putting our families at risk right now when we know the positivity rate is ABOVE 20% and all of the hospitals are maxed out with sick children OR to simply forfeit our kids placement in their schools and risk their academic options for the future is completely unreasonable.

Please allow a video or virtual option where kids can see the class as if they were there and call it done for now. No added stress on teachers with separate virtual classes, no tricky software, just as simple as possible. It will make the schools safer and less crowded and this is the only reasonable option that helps address the varied concerns and perspectives of the general population. Most importantly, it doesn't cost them placement in the schools our kids worked hard to get into and severely impact their future academic options.