Ben Knight Writes

It is now seven months into the COVID-19 pandemic in Kansas. Cases have been steadily going up in the state and in an increasingly abnormal world, schools are making an attempt to open amidst the growing threat of COVID-19.

In recent years, our schools have become fortresses in an effort to guard against active shooters. But will student masks really protect students, and their loved ones, from the pandemic?

While the district is working hard to reassure parents they are capable of opening their schools and handling the ongoing threat, parents are apprehensive about sending their children into an enclosed building with hundreds of other students.

Critics of the decision by the Shawnee Mission School District to open believe officials remain ill-prepared to handle populated classrooms.

“SMSD schools are basically hosting COVID parties like the mother of GenXers used to host chickenpox parties.” said one parent.

Similar feelings have been echoed throughout the district as parents are looking to SMSD for guidance and leadership.

Brandon Worf, the Overland Park parent of an elementary school student, echoed the concern.

“I feel like the administration of SMSD, in particular, has basically decided to sacrifice the faculty and staff of the schools in order to satisfy the lunatic demands of suburban white parents that are too selfish to take public health into consideration,” he said.

Two days after the school year started, SMSD announced that elementary schools will be transitioning to hybrid learning for two weeks.

Parents were notified they had less than a week to choose a school plan for their kids.

Parents were given the ability to choose between a remote learning option where students would spend the entire semester at home or an in-person model where students would either be in school full time, part of the time, or not at all depending on the JCDHE gating criteria.

Instead of committing for the semester as originally planned by the district, parents were informed they were going to have to commit for the whole year.

It didn’t take long for some to voice their displeasure

“My family agonized over remote on in-person, ultimately choosing remote because we knew we could switch at semester,” said Megan Langford, a Lenexa resident. “Now you’re taking away that option on Day 2?”

The board says they are following the “gating criteria” set forth by the Johnson County Department of Health and Environment sometimes, but are also deciding “according to the operational capacity to handle students” Dr. Fulton, SMSD’s superintendent said, in their September 9th meeting.

With contradicting statements and a lack of transparency, parents searching for leadership now wonder about what is going on with the school board.

“I hear when they make a decision, but it’s not entirely clear to me why or how they make those decisions,” said Chris Atkins, a Johnson County resident that has both of his children studying remotely.

On October 27th, SMSD released COVID data for the district. According to the data, 141 students and staff are in “active isolation” and 152 individuals are in “active quarantine”.

“It’s stupid,” said Atkins. “School buildings should be closed. Kids should be working remotely.”

Shelby Rebeck, Director of Health Services for the Shawnee Mission School District, has been the point person working with JCDHE on safely handling the school reopening. She says SMSD schools have a mask mandate for students and staff except for when eating and drinking.

“People are masking appropriately.” Shelby Rebeck assured. “As long as masks are worn appropriately we do not have to quarantine.”

Masking is only one part of SMSD’s plan to help curb the spread of COVID-19. The district is also directing students and staff to socially distance, refrain from touching their faces, and regularly wash hands throughout the school day.

But it appears there are some mixed messages.

“You can be three feet apart,” Rebeck said. “As long as masks are being worn, then you don’t have to be full six feet”

This concerns SMSD parent Worf.

“As far as I am aware… masks are theoretically being worn except for lunch or when getting a drink,” Worf said. “They’re supposed to be enforcing social distancing during recess, but they’re not. They’re kids, so it’s basically impossible.”