By: Gordon Beinstein
If you had the ‘pleasure’ of tuning into the last couple of Greenwich Public School’s Board of Education meetings, you likely left with the impression that the school administration and teaching staff could do nothing right. The speakers and the Board discussions, with a few notable exceptions, focused on everything we did not do or don’t have as a result of reopening during a global pandemic. The parental grievances and Board debates ranged from class size to the elective offerings and even touched on who is sitting next to whom in French class. I’m not suggesting that their concerns aren’t very real for those who shared out, but considering this pandemic has cost hundreds of thousands of lives and millions more their jobs, we need to take perspective. The focus shouldn’t be on what you did not get but rather what we did provide….SCHOOL!
We are the only district in the area that has opened its doors for 5 days a week, for 6 plus hours every day for every child grades K-8 who wishes to attend. In addition, for those for whom ‘in-school’ education wasn’t right for their families, the district is operating a completely separate remote learning elementary experience and has provided the means for all children in grades 6-8 to stream into their scheduled classes from home. As you might expect, considering the scope of these efforts, this work has not gone off seamlessly, but we are improving daily. To get your kids through our doors safely some sacrifices had to be made. As one who had to make many of these decisions, I can tell you I took no joy in compromising the schooling experience for our kids. However, I would do it again because the schedule we created, while imperfect, gave your children real-life school. The work we did to reopen schools for all allowed parents to go back to work, provided the structure kids need to thrive and a sense of normalcy in a challenging time. This is something to be celebrated not denigrated.
As a middle school principal, I saw first hand the negative impact of the shutdown this past spring. Through calls to DCF and the GPD, home visits, and parental communications, I witnessed the extent of the suffering our children endured by not being in the building. I’m not referring to a loss of a few months of math or Spanish instruction. I am talking about deep social-emotional scars that, unlike any academic losses, will not be easily rectified. It is also important to note that, while this pandemic affects everyone, it does not do so equally. I have heard it said we are all in the same boat. We are not! We are in the same storm, but there are those weathering it in luxury yachts while others are barely holding on to the sides of their dinghys. Our neediest children go without food, emotional support, and family ‘wrap-around’ services when we are not there for them. Schools work to fill these voids and bridge the opportunity gap. Without us, the chasm grows. This is why we NEED to be in school regardless of the temporary impact on some aspects of our programming.
To be transparent, the decision to return to school full time was not mine to make, but it is one I support for the reasons outlined above. My job was to make it work. Now, two-plus weeks in, I know we did the right thing. I know because every day I see our kids and staff connecting, teaching and learning. Thanks to the herculean efforts and expertise of our teachers, when I walk my building it looks and feels like school. I also know because I have had more than 25 students who initially signed up for remote learning who have returned to ‘live’ school in fewer than 10 school days. When I inquire as to why, inevitably, the answer lies in how well they hear we are running our buildings and how much their kids miss the staff and their friends. I also know because my colleagues and I have received numerous communications from parents thanking us for doing what was necessary to open the buildings for all. These parents ARE appreciative of what they have. They understand that difficult choices had to be made, yet they trusted that those who made them did so in their child’s best interest. If you missed that message in the community comments and subsequent discussions at the Board of Education meetings, you are not alone.
This is already and will continue to be, an incredibly challenging school year. I am hopeful that we can come together as a community with an understanding that schools will be imperfect for a while, but that these changes, while necessary, are temporary. If our conversations can focus on providing a school experience that supports the social, emotional, and academic development of ALL of our children we will come out on the other side of this stronger for having united in this effort.
