December 4, 2020: Pandemic Challenges
During spring break last school year, our world was turned upside down by COVID-19. Little information was known about the pandemic, how COVID-19 spread and the impact it had on our students, families and staff. So schools like LPS shut down and went 100% remote last spring.
As it became more evident that COVID-19 was not going away anytime soon, school districts had June and July to work with their local health departments and prepare for the 2020-2021 school year based on what information they had. From early on, Lincoln Public Schools staff have indicated the pandemic plans and protocols would be updated as appropriate. The plan is built in a way that allows flexibility to take into account changing conditions and new information. Our staff have been able to make adjustments as they continue to collaborate with the Lincoln-Lancaster County Health Department, and as a result of ongoing feedback from families, teachers and staff.
Joining Lincoln Board of Education member Don Mayhew to talk more about the challenges of running a school district during a pandemic are Communications Director Mindy Burbach, Superintendent Steve Joel, and Board Vice President Bob Rauner.
Do you have a question you’d like answered? Submit your questions here.
Join us for “LPS LIVE: Board Preview” with Don Mayhew on Tuesday, Dec. 8, at 5 p.m. on the LPS Facebook page. Our next “LPS Board Update” will be Friday, Dec. 18 at noon, and can be found on the LPS website, the LPS Facebook page, and the LPS YouTube Channel.
Video Transcript
Don Mayhew
Hi, my name is Don Mayhew, and I’m a member of your Lincoln Public Schools Board of Education.
Mindy Burbach
And I’m Mindy Burbach, communications director for Lincoln Public Schools.
Don Mayhew
2020 has been an incredibly strange year, there have been a lot of challenges. And one of those is trying to communicate effectively how we are responding to the virus and how we are running a school district during this global global pandemic. So one of the things that we have decided to do is to record these interviews with people who are on the frontlines of making these decisions, put that on Facebook, and give people a chance to watch and submit questions and then respond to those interviews.
Mindy Burbach
And Don, this was actually we did this started about four years ago, where it was just an iPad, you, me and a guest in our break room here at the District Office. And we would do these LPS live updates before the board meeting so that people could be more informed and engaged on topics that we as a school district are looking at one of those hot topics around the district. And we’ve come a long way. And thanks to the pandemic, we’re able to do it over Zoom a lot easier.
Don Mayhew
Well, and today, we’re going to be talking with Dr. Joel and with Dr. Bob Rauner. And I’m looking forward to having those conversations with them. Those are two of the folks who have really been at the forefront of a lot of very important conversations and decisions.
Mindy Burbach
As we move forward. Our next show will be on December 18. So these are going to err on the Fridays prior to when board meetings would be. Now we only have one board meeting in December. But our next show on December 18, we’ll take a look at other topics in addition to the pandemic that we as a school district are also working on. In addition, we’re going to have our LPS live shows before the board meeting again, to follow up on these Friday episodes. So on Tuesdays prior to the board meeting, we’ll air a live show with you and a guest to follow up on any questions that might come up through social media or our website. we’ll tackle those questions as they come up. So with that, are you ready to get started with your first guest?
Don Mayhew
I’m excited. I want to talk to Dr. Joel.
Mindy Burbach
All right, let’s get going.
Don Mayhew
All right, Steve, one of the biggest challenges this year has to be the constant information coming in from all the different sources, it seems like we learned something new every day. There are have been times where guidances that we’ve gotten have been inconsistent with other guidances or with themselves over time. And we know that this is causing a lot of anxiety, anytime protocols change to address the information, the new information that we have learned about COVID-19. What is our process before LPS makes changes or updates our protocols?
Steve Joel
Well, Don, I think you’re absolutely right. I mean, it’s very confusing time for everybody. And you know, we’re, we’re living by headlines. So you know, whatever information comes out, causes people including us to think about our protocols and think about, you know, our processes. You know, fortunately for us, we have a great relationship with the Lincoln Lancaster health department, we meet with them on a weekly basis and more frequently, if needed. And really, they guide us, they’re the ones that told us initially, you know, we go red, this is back in April, in May we go red, red ought to be remote. I mean, that’s uncontrollable, spread, you know, no place is going to be safe. And they’re also the ones that told us when you know, recently that we think our schools are safe, despite, you know, the red conditions that exist in the community, following the protocols, as we’ve developed them mean, our schools are safe. So any plan, particularly when it was written six months ago, with a lot less information has to be subject to revision. And that’s in fact, what occurred now that because certain people were banking on the fact that red equals remote, you know, I understand that there was some concern and their part, which is why we tried to communicate it a little bit earlier. Before we we haven’t gone remote.
Don Mayhew
And I’m glad that you hit on that because that was something I wanted to drill down to a little bit because I think a lot of people did feel like we kind of moved the goalposts. But the reality was, when we made that decision to change our response to the dials hitting red, we had more information, what changed? Why did we end up making a different decision on that?
Steve Joel
We had to write it before we knew anything about the virus. I don’t think we even had much community spread, when in fact, we wrote our plan came out over the summer. So we knew that whatever we put in there was going to be revised. So it was a 600 page document that you know, had a whole bunch of information in it. And there is a lot of that that’s been changed. I mean, there was no nobody wrote a 2020 pandemic playbook that we could just go grab and say okay, here’s what we have to do. We had to kind of develop it as we went. So that’s why and and you know, I completely understand that, you know, People want consistency, they want predictability. This is something that’s not predictable, wasn’t done. And, you know, quite frankly, it isn’t right now. But the one constant in everybody’s life is if schools are safe, we ought to be having students and staff in school, but we have to take those protective measures to ensure that their continued safety, we’re not going to close our schools, unless authorities higher than us tell us that is in the best interest of this community. Because at the end of the day, Don, we’re a work community partner, and we have to do our part. And right now our part would say, if your schools are safe, that’s seven hours a day that students are safe. And if they’re not in school, how safe are they? What’s their environment going to be like?
Don Mayhew
Well, and you make a good point, too, because I think when parents are trying to figure out how to make their lives work, how to make their schedules work for their kids, they want to know what to expect, and they want consistency. But on the flip side of that, like you said, there was no playbook for this. We’re making the playbook as we go. And as we get more information, sometimes the conclusion the decision has to change. And so there, it’s this ever evolving environment that we have to react to. But ultimately, the drivers doing what’s best for kids.
Steve Joel
Yeah, that that has to drive us, you know, we want our community to be happy, we want to be able to develop as much Community Trust as possible. But at the end of the day, it’s what’s best for kids has to drive our decisions. And I’ve always felt like through this pandemic, that’s been our focus.
Don Mayhew
One of the unfortunate things, I think that’s been a factor throughout this pandemic is the role of politics. At one point, you were quoted as saying, as noting that the governor wanted the schools to be open. And I think a lot of people interpreted that to mean, therefore, no matter what the science says, we’re doing what the governor said. And obviously, that wasn’t the case. But how do you respond to that type of thing, because people hear or see things, especially with social media, it’s very easy to take something out of context. And assume the worst case, despite the fact that everything that’s been driving us has been just trying to do what’s best for kids. But how do you how do you respond to that kind of thing?
Steve Joel
Yeah, well, I’ve had to respond to that, of course, and I know you have as well, we don’t work with the governor at all, he doesn’t really have any jurisdiction over us. But you know, he is the governor of the state, and he is accountable for all things Nebraska, we take our direction from the commissioner. And in Lincoln and Lancaster County, it’s the health department. And plus, we have an added bonus, we have Dr. Bob Rauner, on our board who’s, you know, just this incredible gift of public health, because that’s his area of expertise. So I would basically say, you know, let go of the politics of it. And you know, at the end of the day, you know, we’re not playing politics, we governor never told us, we had to open our schools or else, he left it up to individual decisions. Commissioner of Education said we need back to school reopening plans. And that’s why we all state all 280 districts created those plans,
Don Mayhew
whoever the governor is, obviously when the governor speaks, you’re going to listen and factor that in. But the voice that I think has been overwhelmingly more influential for me has been all the parents who said please keep the schools open. Or in the case of the high schools, when we’re on the three-two schedule saying, Please, is there a way you can make an exception for my student and get them at 100%.
Steve Joel
And you know, Don, at the end of the day, I tell my team and I just gotten done speaking with all the departments here at LPSDO. And, you know, I say is, regardless of what you read, regardless of what you hear, or you experience, know, this 80% of our parents support us. And you know, probably more than that, you know, most of the remote parents support us. They know we’re trying to make the best decisions we can. But you know, one of the things that I’ve learned through my career and you’ve learned as a board member, I’m sure is that we have to make decisions for 50,000 humans, we can’t make one a decision for this particular group that feels very strongly that they’ve got the right response or this group that feels the same way. And as policymakers, we have to we have to find the solution that we think meets the best interests of the vast majority of our kids, I try to focus on the sources that I need to provide good accurate information and make the best decisions I can and so that when when I’m working with the board and your colleagues, you know, the recommendations we make or are based on are grounded in, you know, good practice.
Don Mayhew
I’m going to be talking with Dr. browner in a bit and I’m going to ask him this question too. But I’d also like to get your perspective. We took a lot of criticism on Facebook and another and at board testimony, public comment, why aren’t you following the UNMC guidelines or why aren’t you following the CDC guidelines? And again, with the the changes over time, and the inconsistency is which with each other, and what is what what is your take on that when people say why aren’t you following the CDC guidelines?
Steve Joel
I think it’s convenient to find the guideline coming from the entity that you most closely align with right. And so you know, with the CD with regard to the CDC, we all know that that’s a governmental entity. And, and their guidelines have changed a lot over time. So what we have to do is we have to say, who’s the best authority in this state? It’s the county health departments, and we have to put our faith and our trust in those folks. They’re the experts, right? Because we’re not. And you know, really what they tell us is, what they tell me, what they inform us on is what’s going to drive our decision making.
Don Mayhew
I think that there is no arguing that this year, I want to talk a little bit on the effect on staff. This is one of the hardest asks, that we’ve ever made on staff, and they’ve been completely amazing throughout this pandemic. We’ve asked everyone: administrators, custodial staff, bus drivers, nutrition services, office staff, support staff, para-educators, as well as teachers to do more than they’ve ever had had to do before. And every day they show up and support our students and our families. And we know that this is exhausting work. So my question is, what are some of the ways that we are working to support our staff?
Steve Joel
Well, first of all, the response of our nearly 8000 employees is, is unbelievable. And you know, it’s, it’s, it’s the LPS way. It’s it’s what our employees do when, when they’re called on to perform the toughest work under the toughest conditions. And the response has been extraordinary. So I’m so proud of every department and every one of our employees that are making a difference in the lives of kids. Now, having said that, you know, Don, we’ve what we’ve tried to do is we’re listening, we understand that teaching in a hybrid model, and two different ways is very difficult, very taxing, cumbersome, frustrating. It’s fraught with a whole bunch of things, we didn’t go to school to learn how to do, or you know how to fix and it’s just difficult, the classroom environment is difficult, vast majority of our teachers are managing as well as can be expected. And what we’ve tried to do is pull stuff off their plates, Board of Education improved a bunch of time that we’ve been able to add to the calendar. That’s been that’s, I think that’s been something that has been well received. So you know, we’re, we’re trying to be appreciated, we’re trying to be supportive. But you know, at the end of the day, it’s it’s what’s happening in the classroom and the schools and at the, at the bus barn and in our cafeterias is really making all the difference in the world. And our board appreciates everybody, we appreciate everybody. And, you know, I keep telling groups that I meet with that we’re going to get to the end of this and it’s over with, we’re going to look back and say, You know what, we did incredible work. And I’m proud of the work that we’ve done. And I think our community is going to be equally so.
Don Mayhew
One of the the questions that I’ve heard the most about the way we’re doing the remote, the remote learning, is the fact that we chose that hybrid model. we drill down into that a little bit, why did we decide to go with that? Why did we decide that was best?
Steve Joel
Well, you know, you’ll recall, and I think anybody listening to your show, recall that, you know, we were doing this in the dark, we didn’t really know, you know, what, what we’re facing how long we’re gonna face it, what it was going to look like how many people were, you know, not going to be interested in sending their kids to school in a pandemic. And we knew that max flexibility was something that parents wanted. And then we got into it and realize that, you know, it’s tough, it’s really hard, particularly with students that have spotty internet access with, you know, we were governed by privacy rules. So we can’t require students to put on their cameras, which, you know, really frustrates teachers, because they don’t know if students really there if they’re reconnecting, but but I think at the end of the day, if we had to think all over again, which is why we just recently completed a survey, you know, we probably would have thought about a virtual school concept. But it was always going to be something very difficult to fund, you know, it’s I think, Dr. Larson, about a million and a half dollars additional a year to do a virtual school concept. And as you know, we’ve got some major budgetary issues in front of us, I think we’re giving it some more thought now, because we we do have some parents that have really grown acclimated to the remote model. And, you know, unless we can guarantee that there won’t be any more germs in school. You know, this might be something that public education deals with, for the foreseeable future.
Don Mayhew
So again, in choosing that model, it starts from a place of trying to do what’s best for kids and what’s best for families. And I think that a result of that, though, is that we’ve got a lot of teachers who feel that they are doing two jobs now. They’re feeling stressed out, and I and understandably so. And I think that one of the things that has come out of this is the fact that maybe what you and I have known for a long time, and maybe what a lot of people have, but the reality is, teachers are essential workers. And we recognize that that has an effect on the teachers. We’ve been trying to do things within the constraints of our budget. Like reducing requirements for work trying to give them more time. But it’s still, it still has an effect. And we know that our staff are tired, but we’re trying to do what we can to provide them to provide them some supports.
Steve Joel
You know, we are and I’ll tell you, I’ve heard and I’m sure you have as well to how appreciative our parents are that even in the remote setting, that their student has a relationship with a teacher that they were accustomed to, that they were expecting to have. Those relationships. I mean, we what we’ve learned through the pandemic, is relationships matter. And the relationships that teachers have with students, and is is probably the single biggest factor in their ability to be successful. And, you know, with the number of students that have been quarantined, we know, we knew that if we had a remote school option, what would we do with the quarantine students, right? teachers that would still have to do some remote if they ended up having, you know, students in their class that were quarantine. So we still believe we selected the right model. But it’s been a tough one. It’s been a really, really difficult one, or we’ve asked a lot of our teachers, and they responded in a in a way that, you know, just fills me with pride.
Don Mayhew
Thank you so much for your time, Dr. Joel, I know you’re a very busy person. And I’ll tell you as we’ve worked our way through this unprecedented occurrence in our in our country and in our school district, there’s nobody I’d rather have sitting in your seat than you. Thank you so much for your work. And thank you for your time today answering our questions.
Steve Joel
Back at you Don. appreciate it very much. Thank you. Thanks.
Don Mayhew
While every school district is doing their best to navigate this pandemic, LPS has been incredibly fortunate to have Dr. Bob Rauner around the board. Bob, thank you for joining me and having some conversations about what it’s like to run a school district in the age of COVID. First of all, since March, you’ve been updating our community through these videos that you’ve been putting out on YouTube. And I saw that episode 52 just recently came out. In these you talk about what new information has come out and what that means. And you look at the data. So let’s start with a very broad question. What lessons have we learned since last spring?
Bob Rauner
Well, one, we’ve learned a lot we had to sort of in March, we had like, had to sort of panic-close because we didn’t have any data we didn’t know where we were, we didn’t know what we could or couldn’t do. The most important thing is we have learned that one, there’s things we shouldn’t do but also there’s things we can do. One of them, which is have schools open, for example. Now in March, we didn’t know it is just shut everything down, because we literally didn’t know. And it’s changing pretty much every week. And so one of my frustrations is the people who read something in July don’t want to change for months. And so we know so much more. And it’s something we’re we’re literally looking at every day. I mean, I’ve talked to health folks from both public Health and the school just this morning on is safe to keep our schools open, for example. And these are things we need to look at data as we go. I was even a co author on a report and one was it was pretty restrictive. That UNMC and folks put out Harvard was a little less restrictive, both of them were just, here’s our best idea for now. Both of them turned out that they sort of both underbid, meaning we can have schools open at higher rates. But that’s partly because we’ve learned some really important things like one masks more important, more effective than we thought they were. So therefore, you can do more than you thought. As long as everybody wears a mask. And the problem, the breakdowns typically happen when people take their mask off. They essentially we’ve learned a lot about how ventilation makes a huge difference. And so the timing of air quality projects in Lincoln was huge. That’s added a lot to our safety, I believe. And then, you know, just doing we can with spacing, I think we had a we argued, and I know that Liz Standish and Matt Larson had a lot of arguments about whether they should, you know, do synchronous or asynchronous both. I think as hard as it’s been in our teachers, it was better because it’s given us the flexibility. And even lately, our numbers of people opting for remote are going up as every family makes its own decision. I think that flexibility, though hard on teachers has been very good for our community.
Don Mayhew
You hit on a couple things there that I’d like to drill down on a little bit. First off, I think one of the criticisms that we and others have taken that I found interesting is they say, well, three months ago, you said this, and now you’re saying something different. And that’s kind of the scientific method where as you get more information in your conclusions can change. And as you said, we know more now than we did back then and we’re making more informed decisions. And in a couple of months, we may know more yet and our decisions may yet change. Yeah.
Bob Rauner
People want things to be ironclad and never changing and black and white. In my college biology professors said the world is not black and white. It’s shades of grey and reality is actually it’s multicolored. When you’re doing things in a highly uncertain new environment. You are going to make mistakes sometimes and people have to be okay with that. You do the best judgment with what you have when you have it. And try to be as transparent as you can. You can’t be transparent everything meaning we can’t say Joe over there has coronavirus that’d be illegal. Yeah. And some people understand that that schools have two sets of legalities. They have HIPAA because we’re talking health care, which is the health care priority privacy laws. We have FERPA, which is the education privacy laws, both of which have very serious consequences when you violate them. So everybody wants complete transparency. But there’s only so much transparency you can have just because, you know, we also have our own privacy too. So it’s hard.
Don Mayhew
Okay, so one of the big questions that I’ve been getting consistently, perhaps, that we’ve all been getting is why do we feel that it is safe for the schools to be open right now we’ve had a number of people come and testify at our board meetings, saying we shouldn’t be exposing our kids to any risk being in the schools is exposing risk, therefore, we should shut them down unequivocably why are, why do we feel that the best place for kids to be during the day is in school?
Bob Rauner
Well, one thing is concept of a risk versus a risk. People think it’s a risk versus a benefit. There is a risk of having the schools open. But there’s also a huge risk to not having the schools open. And people have to realize that we’re weighing one versus the other. So it’s not like everything is perfectly safe, if we all have Everybody stay home, because that’s actually also not true. And so which one is the worst risk not is it isn’t risky, of course, there’s a risk. But there’s a risk for me walking to work today to I have to cross a busy street, I could get hit by a car, but just walk to work everyday. Because there’s also health benefits of me walking versus driving actually too. And schools are same way there are enormous risks to not having the kids in schools, everything from mental health, to educational delays to a lack of access to food, and how to hack out impacts a family. And a lot of people don’t understand that just because my family situation is this way doesn’t mean every family situation is this way. And so we have to accommodate as many types of families as possible. And some families may have a mother or father or grandparent who can stay home and help, you know, Johnny or Jane do zoom education, but a lot of families don’t. And so we have to serve both of those types of families. And so everything has to be customized. And we always have to consider all the other risks that go along with shutting schools. We do know that the kids in Lincoln public schools are not getting infected because they’re in school. For the most part, most of the times we’ve and the contact tracers. One of the benefits is a lot of our school nurses spent a good part of the summer moonlighting as contact tracers themselves, we’ve not been able to detect any more spread within a school wall than outside, if anything is less least for the kids. There may be a subset of teachers that are higher risk, and then well, based on that data will adjust accordingly.
Don Mayhew
So closing the schools doesn’t remove the risk, it just changes it. And so we’re constantly weighing what is safer, what is riskier. At some point conditions may change, we may decide that closing the schools is in fact safer right now, in school is the best place for kids to be?
Bob Rauner
Yes, let’s talk about it, I’d say right now for most kids.
Don Mayhew
And that’s overwhelmingly what parents are choosing when offered the choice they want their kids in school. I as I said, my intro, I think it’s been incredibly valuable having you on the board to take the lead in a lot of these discussions that we’re having to help us understand some of the big decisions that we’re making. You’re in your first term as a board member. And I know that there is a for any elected office, there’s a huge learning curve. And on top of that, you have now risen to this position where a lot of people are relying on your expertise. I know it’s taking a lot of time. Just on a personal note for a second, how has your board service in the age of COVID. affected your personal and your professional life?
Bob Rauner
It’s hard. Yes, teachers are working late hours. But as you know, so is the board and so is the so is leadership. It does certainly mean all of my roles really align with each other. So my day job is public health doctor, my side job is help the school board surely are overlapping more way more than ever thought they would. My wife’s also a physician. So it’s affected her job, of course to she’s seeing patients through the whole thing. I think when people one thing people don’t realize is we’ve learned a lot from the healthcare industry that applies to schools as well. The doctors and nurses and respiratory therapists, they never got to stay home from the beginning. So, but we’ve been able to learn from them. So I’ve actually used those same lessons of my wife’s office and my wife’s office, none of the physicians have gotten infected yet, even though they’ve been seeing patients day in and day out. And they have to get up and close and personal take people’s masks off look in their mouth and their noses, and they’ve been able to stay safe. And just like the schools, most of the time when someone gets infected, it’s because they got it from their spouse at home or a family member, or they got it in the break room. And so just like we think most of our spread within LPS, when it’s happened within our walls happened during lunch or the break room. The same is actually true of doctors offices, you know, people are used to letting down their guard with the people they know. And that sometimes is your weak spot.
Don Mayhew
I mentioned this with Steve too, but I like that parallel with the health care professionals. They are essential employees, we can’t go hospitals because they are needed. And what we’ve been finding i think is a similar dynamic in the schools and you and I and all the administration we’re aware that this is possibly the hardest year ever in a teacher’s career, trying to do all that as being asked for them. The additional health and safety measures the risks to their own personal health. And we are trying to take steps to make to take a little bit of the load off to try to provide a little more planning time do the things we can within the constraints of our budget and taking care of our kids. We’re trying to do as much as we can. But the reality is, we can’t close the schools right now, because that is the safest place for kids to be.
Bob Rauner
Yeah. All right, sir. pointed out as those doctors and nurses and respiratory therapists, they have children too. And they’re in our school. And if we send them home, what are those? What are they going to do with the kids because we need to be at the hospital. So
Don Mayhew
earlier, you were talking a little bit about the the unfortunate effect of politics. And again, I had asked Steve about this as well. But early on, he was quoted as saying that the governor wants us to stay open. And then we decided to stay open. And a lot of people, I think, interpreted that, that we were doing what the governor said no matter what’s best for teachers or kids know, but that’s not the case.
Bob Rauner
No, no, I mean, at the risk of getting in trouble, we haven’t listened to what he said at all, honestly. Essentially, Our duty is to the children, it is what’s best for the children. I don’t care what any politician says the mayor, the governor or the president, if it’s not good for kids, that’s the driving decision point. I think that ours all seven board members would would you behind that. If you don’t like what we’re doing, talk to us. Because frustration is angry chain letters, form letters, public comment monologues, without ever bothering to talk to us. Those are not those are monologues, not dialogues. And so problems get solved with dialogue. And most I’m pretty sure you and I and all of our board members were more than happy to talk with somebody meet with somebody. And that’s, you know, it’s literally one of the one of your constitutional rights to petition your elected official. So find out who your elected official is and talk to them.
Don Mayhew
Very good. Dr. Rauner, thank you so much for your time. And thank you for all the work that you’ve been doing on behalf of our kids for the school district. It has been such a such a value having you on the board at this time. Thank you for that.
Bob Rauner
You’re welcome.
Mindy Burbach
Don, those were two really great interviews with two people that have had a lot of work and a lot of time put into it and a lot of effort into our pandemic response, what is something that really stuck out to you in both of those interviews?
Don Mayhew
One of the things that, and I think Steve and Bob both alluded to this, the fact that when people come and they talk to us, if we don’t do what they asked us to do, that doesn’t mean we’re not listening, we are listening very hard. We’re considering everything that comes into us. We’re making the best decisions we can not everybody is gonna like every decision. But please keep talking to us. I know that there are a lot of ways that people can get in touch with us. But we read and listen to everything that comes in and consider it in our in our decision making and refresh for us how people can get in touch with us if they want if they want to.
Mindy Burbach
Yeah, there’s multiple ways. So if you can’t make it to the Board of Education meeting to speak during public comment, there’s many ways that you can contact your local board member, if you go to our website, lps.org. And there, you can click on the board tab, there’s all of the contact information for each board member, you can also look up which board member serves your district. In addition, if you would like to, you can go through our website and click on the blue contact us button. You can do it anonymously. Or you can leave your name and contact information. We do prefer that people do leave their name and contact information because we would like to follow up with them. But there are ways for you to reach out to the board members and ask questions and engage in that dialogue. And I think that’s the one thing that stuck out with me is Dr. Rauner are saying, you know, we want we want to do a dialogue, not a monologue. And I think that’s very important in civil discourse that we teach in our schools as well as how to have that dialogue.
Don Mayhew
And in speaking of that dialogue, throughout this year, I’ve been contacted by so many parents who they watch the same news we do, they are exposed to the same information we have. And when they are given the choice, they want their kids in school, that was another thing that that really stood out with me is that we know we and we have numbers and data to back that up. But parents want their children to be in school during the day.
Mindy Burbach
And that is a difficult decision for families to make. But ultimately, we’ve got to allow families to make that decision on what’s best for them. We as a district try to make decisions that are best for the majority. But ultimately, the family has to make the choice of what works best for their family. And I think what’s great about the plan that we put forth, is we do allow that flexibility, it’s hard, nothing about it is easy, but we allow families to make that choice in that decision that works best for them.
Don Mayhew
I think that some people have been frustrated not knowing what the guidelines are or where the lines are going to be. Always and and I get that when you’re trying to establish routines for your family. You want to know where the lines are going to be. And it’s been tough for us to answer some of those questions, because there might be so many different local situations. It’s not the only question isn’t closing the district. It could be closing a building. It could be closing a classroom, it could be closing a grade level. And so as you say that flex ability is there, there is that little bit of a trade off. And I realized that people are feeling some uncertainty. But I think we have to allow ourselves that flexibility in order to give our parents the most choices.
Mindy Burbach
We really do. I think the major theme over and over in both interviews was we’re going to do what’s right for kids. That’s our mission at Lincoln public schools, the board does that in every decision they make, I’ve seen it time and again, the board’s going to do what’s right for kids in the same way with our administration and our staff. And so as long as we keep that mission in the forefront, I think we can’t go wrong.
Don Mayhew
And I you, I’ve seen that with our teachers too. And like we’ve said so many times, this has got to be one of the hardest years ever to be a teacher. But as we go through buildings, and we see teachers in the classroom, and they’ll come to us and say, yeah, this is hard, and I’m exhausted. But they’ll also say, and this was, this is what’s best for kids, and there’s no other place I’d rather be. So we’re going to continue to do what’s best for kids. Well, I think that’s a wrap for this again, my name is Don Mayhew. And I’m Mindy Burbach.
Thanks for watching.
Updated December 4, 2020
