Trust, Inclusion and School Reopening Plans

My experiences in life include roles as coach, waitress, clown, Girl Scout leader, nurse, attorney and last, but not least, parent. These experiences have taught me that leaders and people in positions of power build trust by having a vision, communicating with clarity and by fostering inclusion.

At the last BOE meeting, I said “I just don’t feel confident” about our school reopening plans. Upon reflection, I realized that I lack trust in the leadership of the Moorestown education system.

I have spoken to dozens of parents, educators and elected officials and patched together hundreds of pieces of information. I have a fully informed point of view, but I don’t have a meaningful platform to share it. Individuals are allotted a mere 3 minutes to speak at the BOE meeting with no Q&A. Some parents who write to the administration receive a prompt response, others never hear anything. Social media is inefficient, impersonal, and often negative and divisive. Many people are afraid to speak up at all, for fear of facing negative consequences. The result is a community in crisis lacking leadership from the administration to achieve our common goal—the best education for our children.

While COVID-19 is still among us, schools can safely and fully reopen for in-person learning within CDC and State guidelines. Our community deserves a plan to accomplish this. Unfortunately, due to lack of preparation, we are paralyzed in the confines of the Hybrid Model. This model is costly, complicated and results in more work for teachers and less learning for all children than a fully synchronous model. The solution is for cohorts to be combined with the option for 5 day in-person or full remote learning.

A plan to return to our schools is likely the most significant issue that this BOE will confront. Yet, the BOE delegated authority to Dr. McCartney as the sole and final decision maker on this issue, and we have witnessed inertia and a lack of transparency as a result. I strongly believe that if the BOE fails to act, Dr. McCartney will maintain the status quo indefinitely. His actions to date and commentary during public meetings indicate as much. We are going to be stuck in this Hybrid Model if we do not develop a plan to move us forward immediately.

As community elected representatives, the BOE has the responsibility to lead and put our children first. The BOE needs to act quickly and decisively to implement a plan that is consistent with the CDC and State guidelines and increases in-person instruction across all grades.

Regardless of whether you agree with my beliefs, let’s foster an inclusive community. One where we treat each other with respect, listen, seek to understand each other and be part of the solution.

Sincerely,

Jill Fallows Macaluso