Summit Revises Grade 6-12 Reopening Plan; Teachers Hold Sit-In

SUMMIT, NJ — The Summit school district announced Wednesday that it had revised its final reopening plan for grades 6-12, saying kids in those grades can learn in the buildings every other day, rather than every day. The original plan for kids through grade 5 will stand, allowing those students to attend in single-session classes each day.

Like in all New Jersey districts, parents can also opt to have their kids learn at home full-time.

The change was made to be in line with the state's safety recommendations for social distancing amid coronavirus, the district said Wednesday. (NJ DOH COVID Recommendations for Schools.pdf)

Many area districts offered a plan for those grade levels that had students in the buildings every other day, but Summit begged to differ, saying they felt it was safer to have the kids go every day.

The district explaind on Wednesday, "In order to comply with the Department of Health’s physical distancing recommendations, grades 6-12 will open on an A-B day schedule. Students will attend in-person instruction every other day, which will reduce daily capacity in the schools. Similar to our previous plan, the in-person school day will run on a single session schedule and continue with remote instruction in the afternoons...Further details on school specific plans and choosing instruction delivery will be shared by the building principals by Friday, Aug. 21."

The sit-in

In related news, the Summit teachers' union held two sit-ins in front of the city's middle school on Wednesday, saying it's not safe for their staff to return to school buildings in late August.

The district released its final reopening plan three weeks ago. On Monday, the Summit Education Association, like other unions around the state, said they were concerned that the buildings will not be safe enough among the coronavirus pandemic. (Read their letter here.)

The Summit schools were originally set to reopen to students on Aug. 31, but were scheduled last month to reopen on Sept. 1. Staff must report in late August.

The SEA had previously released a letter last month citing concerns. On Monday they issued a new letter (read it here).

And on Tuesday, they announced the protest, saying:

"The SEA members are eager to return to our classrooms and see our students, but not at the expense of our own health and that of our students and their families. We reiterate that the plan for reopening does not sufficiently address the State's requirements for ventilation, physical distance, crowded classrooms and more. We respectfully request that each of these be addressed specifically and thoroughly before we reopen buildings to our students. On Wednesday, August, 19th, from 8:30-9:30 a.m. and 4:30-5:30 p.m., the SEA will be sitting-in in front of the Middle School to demonstrate how unsafe classrooms will be for students. We ask that Summit delay in-person instruction with a remote start to provide enough time to implement maximum safety measures to protect students and staff."

When asked about safety measures at the protest, a representative said Wednesday afternoon, "Yes, we wore masks and stayed a good distance apart and will do so this afternoon as well."

Summit and national coronavirus statistics and trends

• Around the country, some districts have had to close after student tested positive for coronavirus. Read more here.
• In Summit, the rate of coronavirus has been relatively low. See recent statistics here.
• As of last Thursday, 165,000 Americans had died of coronavirus, and more than 5 million have tested positive.

In New Jersey last Thursday, Gov. Phil Murphy said the number of coronavirus cases statewide has risen to 186,594, with 14,054 confirmed deaths. That included 699 new cases since the day before and eight newly confirmed deaths.

However, that death rate has declined since back on April 30, when it reached a peak of 460 residents in 24 hours.

On Tuesday, New Jersey updated its list of states that residents must quarantine upon returning from. Two new states have been added. Read more: NJ Updates Coronavirus Travel Quarantine For 31 States

Here are statewide coronavirus resources:

• NJ COVID-19 Information Hub: https://covid19.nj.gov/
• General COVID-19 questions: 2-1-1
• NJ COVID-19 hotline: (800) 222-1222

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