Paramus Schools Delay In-Person Start Until November

PARAMUS, NJ — In a sudden change of events, Paramus Public Schools will begin the fall semester with a remote learning model after staff vacancies rose by 284 percent in just three days last week.

Superintendent Sean Adams, who is in his first year on the job, officially announced the move in a letter to the district today, after a virtual Board of Education meeting was so well attended that many couldn't watch due to capacity issues Monday night.

In-person classes, the district announced, will not resume until Nov. 9.

"While circumstances dictated the need for this adjustment, it is nonetheless an extremely disappointing turn of events for our students, parents/guardians, administration, faculty, staff, and Board of Education," Adams wrote.

In total, 50 district employees have now either retired, resigned or requested leaves of absence or reassignment.

Most of those staffing vacancies came between Aug. 26 and Aug. 28, when 27 staffers notified the district of their plan.

With that many vacancies, the district, while still meeting state health and safety requirements, could no longer meet staffing levels required to implement and monitor those protocols.

Adams explains that employees in the district were part of a domino effect.

If a nearby district shifts to remote learning, employees with children in that district can apply for a leave of absence, which Adams said, under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, employers are required to accept.

In Bergen County, Teaneck Public Schools, Wyckoff Public Schools, Bergen County Technical Schools, Ramapo-Indian Hills and Fair Lawn Public Schools will begin the year with a remote learning model.

"This scenario is just one representative example of a number of very recent and different unforeseen circumstances that have resulted in an untenable situation for our schools in Paramus that makes it impossible to meet our staffing demands ahead of our original planned in-person reopening of schools," said Adams.

According to a timeline of events presented at the Monday board meeting, the district reviewed the vacancies, and left no stone unturned in trying to salvage an in-person return — even if just at the elementary school level — but couldn't find a path forward.

So Nov. 9 was selected as a start date for in-person classes, decided based on estimates of how long it would take to interview, vet and onboard new district staffers.

However, Adams explained, if an opportunity presents itself to begin in-person learning sooner, the district will take it.

"We remain steadfast in our commitment to bringing our students back into the school buildings as quickly as possible," he said.

"Therefore, we are prioritizing meeting our staffing needs so that our student populations that benefit the most from in-person learning may be able to return to the school buildings earlier than November 9."