Sharon Teachers Say They Won't Return To School In Hybrid Model

SHARON, MA — If Sharon students return to schools in town in the hybrid learning model the Sharon School Committee approved last week, they may not find anyone there to teach them to start the school year next month.

The Sharon Teachers Association, citing what it said is a concern with a lack of health and safety protocols to protect students and educators, sent a letter to the School Committee on Tuesday stating that Sharon educators voted to use only remote learning to start the year.

"We don't want to be put in harm's way but we also don't want the students to be put in harm's way either," Sharon Teachers Association President Bernadette Murphy told Patch Tuesday afternoon. "We want to work together with the district on a plan where we will all eventually return to school safely."

While families in the state are given a remote-only option for school whether the districts choose full in-classroom, full remote or the hybrid model approved in Sharon, the STA argued its members should be given the same opportunity given their safety concerns.

While the Sharon School Committee voted last week to accept the hybrid plan where student cohorts alternate days in the classroom, with Wednesday being a split day, the STA claimed it is negotiating its own plan with the district, "but to this point has been disappointed that educators have been largely ignored by administrators drawing up opening plans."

The STA resolution said the union will work in partnership with the school district to establish guidelines for a gradual return to in-person learning.

"Families are being asked to make that decision blindly," Murphy said in a statement released on Tuesday. "Before any students or staff are allowed back into the buildings for any length of time, the district must answer many questions about the condition of these buildings as well as specify how those in the schools would be kept safe. At this time, there are no assurances that anyone using the public schools can be reasonably assured that the COVID-19 risk is manageable."

Andrew Tessier, a high school physics teacher, said that while he served on a district-wide advisory committee on remote learning as well as the high school's building reopening team, he does not feel his input was reflected in the final report.

"Sadly, the 94-page plan that puts my name near its top of acknowledgements bears little resemblance to the work or input of myself and the educators I've worked with all summer long," he said.

The STA maintains that a remote start will provide consistency for students.

"As much as I truly want to be back in the building with my students and colleagues, I’ve decided after lots of thought that remote learning is the safest and best way to return to school," said Laura Smolcha, a middle school social studies teacher, in the STA statement. "Remote learning is the best way for all students to be able to develop relationships with each other and their teachers, so that they feel safe enough to learn in an environment where collaboration, creativity and connections can be nurtured and promoted, all while making sure that every student has equal access to the learning experiences being created by their teachers."

The STA said educators have become increasingly concerned about a return to school buildings as coronavirus hot spots have persisted across the country.

"Schools are the core of communities," Heights Elementary fifth-grade teacher Liz Dickinson said. "It’s imperative to keep Sharon students and teachers safe in order to protect the community as a whole."