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DA District Administration
How superintendents can respond to early state reopening orders
ASSA COVID-19 task force discusses balancing between complying with state mandates and keeping students and employees safe
By: Steven Blackburn
May 15, 2020
District leaders should not feel obligated to follow state legislation
that requires their schools to reopen earlier than established safety
guidelines recommend, but they still need to fully comprehend the legal
implications involved in failing to comply, a task force of
superintendents recommends.
This recommendation on reopening schools came during a weekly panel
established by the AASA, The School Superintendents Association to
provide solutions to the coronavirus crisis.
“States such as North Carolina, which has or could pass legislation
requiring schools to reopen in mid-August, put superintendents and
district boards in an awkward position if they feel there hasn’t been
an eight-week reduction in COVID-19 incidents to reopen safely, as the
CDC and White House suggests,” says Daniel A. Domenech, executive
director of the AASA, a professional organization for more than 13,000
educational leaders in the U.S.
Reopening orders and the liabilities associated with reopening schools (and not)
“When states call the shots, and superintendents and school boards want
to stand up against mandates about their schools reopening, there is
liability involved,” he adds.
In these cases, district leaders should obtain legal counsel to see how
much room their school system has and what they can do. Additionally,
the task force recommends that K-12 decision-makers follow the
progression of the HEROES Act, which contains language about
liabilities concerning their employees.
“If schools are forced to reopen, leaders need to understand that
teachers or staff who get sick as a result could sue the school
district if the bill passes, though the senates claims the bill is dead
on arrival,” says Domenech.
Last week, the task force concluded that the process of reopening
schools should not occur until the summer or fall and that districts do
not possess the necessary funds to implement policies that would keep
students safe in school.
“Schools are the biggest provider of child care in the country, and, of
course, everybody wants the economy to recover, but not at the expense
of the lives of kids, staff and members of our schools,” says Domenech.
“As a superintendent, your primary duty is the protection, health and welfare of everyone in your school buildings.”
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