Summer has only begun, but school districts across the region are grappling with how to reopen safely and effectively in the fall. Many are planning for a two-day-a-week schedule, with an option for full home learning for parents who choose.

The Selma Unified School District unveiled an example of fall scheduling at Tuesday night’s board meeting. The schedule for all elementary, middle, alternative and high schools call for in-person classes two days a week, and distance learning from home the other three.

Although nothing has been decided, and the district is still seeking student and parent input via a survey, the premise has left some parents wondering how they will return to work.

Parents say the work of taking some children to school one day and others to school the next seems exhausting.

Amanda Cantu is the parent of three kids at Selma Unified, two in elementary and one in middle school.

“How are us parents supposed to remain working with the schedule like that?” she told The Bee. “I also work full-time. How am I supposed to juggle all that if the kids aren’t in school full time or home full-time?”

Selma Unified parent Erin Glass was supposed to return to work full-time, but if she doesn’t have child care, she won’t be able to, she said.

“If they don’t go back on a regular five days a week schedule, then I will be pulling them from Selma Unified and either placing them in another district who plans on going back full time or doing full-time homeschooling,” she said.

Tiffany Tucker said she pays about $1,200 a month for child care while her two children have been out of school. She was looking forward to relieving that pressure in the fall. She also said school is a better option for her son with special needs.

“If my two children are only going to school two days out of the week, our child care will still be that high,” she said. “My son being special needs, he needs a lot of one-on-one, and the daycare he is at (doesn’t) specialize in his needs. He will definitely fall behind.”

Group A and Group B

When students do return in some fashion in the fall, faculty will be walking a line of welcoming back students who will not have seen a classroom in five months, while fighting against a possible surge of COVID-19 cases.

School leaders are following the California Department of Education’s recently announced guidebook that is meant to help schools reopen safely and efficiently in the fall. State Superintendent Tony Thurmond said that although schools would reopen in some fashion, they will still have to follow specific recommendations that will keep the virus at bay.

The Fresno County Office of Education also released guidelines in May.

One possible schedule would place students into two groups. Group A would attend school Monday and Tuesday, and Group B would attend Thursday and Friday. Faculty could get a professional learning day on Wednesday, and students would work from home on all three days they would be out of school.

The fewer students on campus, the easier it would be to social distance, state guidelines maintain.

But local school leaders are still figuring out how to split students into the groups. Would it be by grade level or by household?

Although the guidelines aren’t mandates, school districts are looking into ways to follow the recommendations. Thurmond said it is likely that restrictions will change at the local county health level, and that will determine how schools can move forward.

Selma Unified has put together a committee to get input from teachers, students, and parents. As summer continues, school districts will get a clearer picture of what will happen. Fresno Unified has put out a similar survey for feedback.

Some parents, such as Mary Cruz Almaraz, are scared to send their children back. Homeschooling works perfectly, and feels safe, they say.

“Online learning has been a challenge for (my kids), but with the help of their teachers, they have made it easier,” Almaraz said.

She understands that teachers will try their hardest, but keeping children wearing masks, hand washing and social distancing may be a near-impossible task.

“We gotta understand and admit that some children will forget and are always touching things,” she said. “The spread of COVID-19 will only increase.”

Others, such as Bianca Torres, say they can accommodate their life and work schedule to fit their kids’ needs.

“(My son) will be a second-grader, and I can’t imagine him having to wear a mask all day for five days if they attend regular schedule,” she said. “I haven’t stopped working throughout all of this, but I’ve made the best of it. My boy has been home safe, and that has been worth it to me.”

The Education Lab is a local journalism initiative that highlights education issues critical to the advancement of the San Joaquin Valley. It is funded by donors. Learn about The Bee’s Education Lab on our website.

This story was originally published June 10, 2020 at 4:28 PM.