By Helina Bailey
Did cold season glide in on an Autumn breeze this year? It feels as though sickness is in the air, with coughs, sneezes, and the stomach flu finding their way into all of our homes. Many counties in East Tennesse have recently closed due to the high number of students and faculty falling ill. Union County opted to have virtual education this month, but many are still sick, with neighboring counties closing their doors before the holiday.
Claiborne County School District decided to give their students the entire week off, switching to virtual education for the Monday and Tuesday before Thanksgiving due to the sheer number of students out sick. At Midway Elementary the students were dropping like flies the week prior, with one hundred students being sent home sick on a single day.
As parents battle sickness and try to keep their children healthy, many are asking why the schools aren’t extending virtual education until we get through this bout of colds. What is the current legislation for going virtual, and who makes the decision? I made some phone calls to find out, and it turns out that there is a lot that goes into it.
If you think the health department is involved, you are wrong. I was shocked to find the health department has nothing to do with it, nor do they even keep track of colds and viruses that afflict the area. The health department only keeps track of Covid numbers these days, so it’s hard to judge what is normal for this time of year. Speaking with local schools in the district, the number of students out sick is still rather high. Alarmingly, the number of faculty currently sick is very high, with substitute teachers also having fallen ill.
The schools are stretched thin right now, trying to find enough subs to fill in for the teachers is difficult. Why then, are the schools not closing down? I spoke to Union County Superintendent Dr. Mincey today to find out. He assured me that, “first and foremost, the health and safety of the students is our priority, along with that of the faculty,” but it’s a complicated situation. Currently, Tennessee Legislation allows for two virtual learning days per semester if the school is prepared to switch to virtual learning. Union County schools have done drills to ensure the students and faculty were prepared in the event that this should happen.
With over 20% of the students out sick at nearly every school in the district, the decision to switch to virtual education for November 3rd and November 4th was made. Because illness was so prevalent, the school board also decided to use one of their stockpiled inclement weather/emergency days to keep the schools closed on November 7th, knowing that the following day would be a school holiday for Election Day. This allowed the students a total of 6 days out of school, to help prevent the spread of illness.
These decisions did not come lightly, as the state has very strict guidelines and rules for school closures and the amount of time that students must legally be in school. Per the state of Tennessee, schools must provide 180 days of instruction. Union County has extended their school day by a few minutes in order to accrue days off, which they reserve for emergencies such as an abundance of sickness in the schools or hazardous weather. Once these days have been used up, the schools will be forced to make up the instructional days. In the past, students have had to attend school on Saturdays because of this.
This is a big part of why the decision to close schools does not come lightly. The director of each school and the attendance liaison collaborate with the school board when it comes to these decisions, trying to ensure that the health and welfare of the students are a top priority, but also trying to balance and weigh the risk of using up the emergency days. Dr. Mincey, the superintendent, and the school board, are monitoring the situation and prepared to take the necessary steps to protect students and faculty, but they are hopeful that the long Thanksgiving break will be fruitful, and this flurry of colds will have passed once the students return.