Lawsuit Would Reopen Hatboro-Horsham Schools During COVID

HORSHAM, PA — A group of Montgomery County residents are filing a lawsuit against the Hatboro-Horsham School District and its board, demanding that in-person classes resume during the coronavirus pandemic.

Filed in Montgomery County's Court of Common Pleas, the lawsuit calls for a judge to order schools in the district be re-opened for in-person instruction and that the members of the district's board of school directors be removed from their positions.

It says its 13 plaintiffs are residents of the Hatboro-Horsham School District, though mailing addresses listed for some of them on the suit include other parts of Montgomery County.

In a news release, plaintiffs say the suit was filed "after months of failed attempts to reason with the Hatboro-Horsham administration and five elected school board members." The release calls school closures, to help curb the spread of the coronavirus, "extended and cruel."

Dr. Scott Eveslage, superintendent of the Hatboro-Horsham School District, said administrators had not been formally served with the lawsuit Tuesday afternoon and that he could not comment on it directly. But, in a written statement, he defended the district's actions in caring for its students.

"The Hatboro-Horsham School District is continually dedicated to providing an excellent education for our community’s children including while we navigate the COVID-19 pandemic," Eveslage said. "Every recommendation, decision, and action taken by the district is done so in consideration of our responsibility to the education, health, and safety to our students, staff, and community at large."

After discontinuing in-person classes in the spring and staring the 2020-21 school year with remote learning, the district had briefly returned to a hybrid model of in-person and remote learning. But, on Nov. 17, as COVID-19 cases and deaths were spiking,the district announced it was returning to an all-remote model.

At the time, Eveslage said it was difficult to keep schools open, citing one day when more than 140 district students and more than 35 staff members were quarantined after exposure to the virus.

"Our ability to functionally operate our schools has grown increasingly challenging," Eveslage said in a letter to parents.

Currently, the district is scheduled to continue remote learning through Jan. 8.

In the lawsuit, plaintiffs cite other area school districts, including many in Bucks County, where students are attending at least some classes in person. They note that while Gov. Tom Wolf recently ordered gyms, restaurants and other businesses to cease indoor operations to help slow the spread of the virus, he did not order schools closed.

It claims students have suffered "skyrocketing depression and anxiety" and notes that many students rely on schools for vital services.

Last week, Montgomery County Commissioner Val Arkoosh said the county was "experiencing an unprecedented surge in cases" after the Thanksgiving holiday.

Pennsylvania's statewide coronavirus percent positivity rate is up to 16.2 percent, officials said Monday.

Meanwhile, the state was closing in on a half-million cases after 18,646 additional COVID-19 infections were reported over the weekend. There had been 499,764 infections in Pennsylvania, including 12,565 deaths, as of Monday.