Parents Still Have Concerns After Pittsburgh Public Schools Announces Options For Returning To School In Fall
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- After hearing the proposed back-to-school plan from Pittsburgh Public Schools for the fall, some parents say they still have a lot of questions while others feel the plan is a step in the right direction.
"Some of my questions were answered, some of them were not," said Elaine Rybski.
Rybski has two kids in Pittsburgh Public Schools at Taylor Allderdice High School. She has a daughter going into her freshman year and a son going into his sophomore year.
"Allderdice is a really big school. How are they going to get that cleaned in one day?" said Rybski.
Rybski did say she was pleased with the meeting overall.
"My major questions that I needed to comfortably make a decision, which I was leaning towards anyway, were answered last night," said Rybski.
The decision she made was opting to have her kids do online learning full-time in the fall.
Some 700 students in the district already registered for online learning.
"I don't feel it's safe. It's not even a question of if someone brings the virus into the schools. It's a question of when," said Rybski.
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The district said in order to make learning safe for everyone, they presented three options: full-time online by choice, a mix of in-person and online classes or full-time online learning.
However, an exclusive online learning plan may become necessary, based on what happens with the coronavirus before school starts next month.
Christen Baker and her husband, Andrew, want their soon-to-be eighth-grader at Pittsburgh Science and Technology Academy to go to school in person.
"He does better that way himself. For two because I don't see how they'll get that social interaction, which I feel is a big part of life," said Christen.
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While Andrew is satisfied with the district's proposed plan, he does have some concerns.
"What if a teacher does contract it and then what about a substitute? Are we gonna have a shortage of subs not wanting to go into a classroom?" said Andrew.
The school board will vote to approve the required safety plan at its legislative meeting next on July 22.
