Gov. Murphy And Legislator Address Maplewood School Controversy

MAPLEWOOD, NJ — With South Orange-Maplewood students soon to mark a year of remote learning, a new parent group has formed to address the situation, and a local legislator has spoken out about the two things that need to happen to fully reopen New Jersey's schools. READ MORE: Maplewood Schools Are Now Remote Indefinitely

Most districts in the state are currently offering some sort of hybrid plan that includes on-site education, but some districts, like Maplewood, are still fully remote. And even among those that have part-time on-site learning, parents say it's time to add more hours, at least for younger and special education students.

Gov. Phil Murphy briefly addressed this controversy on Wednesday, saying, when asked about Maplewood and other districts struggling to reopen: “I don’t blame anyone for their frustration and stress, and it’s legitimate on all sides of this.”

This week, Assemblywoman Mila Jasey (D-Essex and Morris), vice-chair of the Assembly Education Committee and a former member of the South Orange-Maplewood Board of Education, released a long statement about reopening schools, citing two things that will help teachers and students return.

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Jasey said that last summer, the state Department of Education considered a "one-size-fits-all plan" to reopen, but "the diversity of our state’s 584 operating school districts cannot be underestimated or discounted."

She said there are two things districts need to reopen schools fully:

• Coronavirus vaccines for teachers, and
• "Demonstrated ventilation adequacy in interior spaces where windows cannot be opened as the weather improves."

Maplewood officials have cited problems with the district's ventilation system as a reason the schools didn't reopen back in November as initially planned. Teachers still cite various concerns with the buildings, detailing issues in a NJ.com story this week.

Jasey noted that Gov. Phil Murphy plans to include teachers in the next round of those eligible for vaccines.

That may not be fast enough for parents whose students are struggling.

"Virtual learning has been a disaster for my son with ADHD," said Ben Kaplan, a father of two boys in first and fifth grades in the Maplewood school district, recently. "He finally qualified for in-person learning through his IEP. We signed him up, talked about it all weekend, and he packed his backpack. He was so excited. The night before he was set to go back, we got a call that devastated us and him: in-person school was canceled. It sent him into a deep depression."

The Maplewood schools actually briefly opened in January for special education students and certain grade levels, but then went remote again when teachers cited unsafe conditions and said they wouldn't return (see timeline below).

One parent group rallies and another forms

This past Monday, over 100 parents rallied outside Maplewood Town Hall.

"The goal is to urge Superintendent Dr. Ronald Taylor, the South Orange Maplewood Board of Education and the South Orange Maplewood Education Association to reopen in-person learning immediately, five days a week for elementary and special education students," said a release from the group organizing the rally, SOMA for Safe Return To School.

Also on Monday, a new parent group formed called the SOMA Community Alliance For Education, "aimed at bringing the SOMA community together around the schools." They spoke out at that evening's school board meeting.

The letter states, in part, "For nearly a year we have all been living through a collective trauma together. We have lost so much normalcy, so many day to day routines, and comforts of everyday life. Many of us have lost family members and friends, and lacked customary mourning rituals."

They cited among their goals:

• A comprehensive safety plan to provide in-school learning opportunities, especially for highest risk students.
• Sponsoring at least one community town hall
• Dissemination and frequent, transparent communication.

The co-chairs are Nicole Stewart, a first grade parent, educator, and administrator, and Liz Callahan, a kindergarten parent, educator and administrator.

Timeline of events

The 2020-2021 school year in Maplewood so far has been riddled with setbacks.

• On-site learning was originally to begin in the district in November, but problems with the ventilation system put those plans on hold until January.
• In January, the superintendent said some grades could return, as well as special education students, but others would have to wait until at least February.
• In late January, hybrid education opened for a little over a week. Teachers cited unhealthy conditions and refused to report.
• After much discussion, the teachers agreed to return. But thanks to a snowy nor'easter, schools went remote for a week in February.
• The teachers' union sent a letter to the district two weeks ago saying they were concerned about conditions in the schools, and would not report to the buildings.
• The district responded later that Monday, "We are in receipt of SOMEA’s email indicating that they are once again refusing to report to the school buildings. As per the Community Reopening Update of only a few hours ago, the district was making progress in its Phase 3 reopening with no evidence of in-school transmission. We felt that the Sidebar Agreement with SOMEA was working as intended..."
• The superintendent announced classes were now remote "indefinitely."

READ MORE: Maplewood Schools Are Now Remote Indefinitely

Now 349 days

The SOMA parent group has a counter on their webpage that says that it's been 349 days since continuous in-person learning.

They also have a petition for elementary and special education children to return to in-person learning five days a week.

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