HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — Parents in Hillsborough County now have the option to send their kids back to in-class learning starting Monday, August 31. The Hillsborough County School Board voted on the decision at an emergency meeting Friday morning after getting caught in a tug-of-war with lawsuits and the state.
Back on July 23, the board approved a reopening plan that included three back to school options for parents: eLearning, virtual and brick and mortar. On August 3, the board heard from medical experts and changed that decision to only eLearning for the first four weeks of school.
But, the state of Florida rejected that change. In the meantime, two lawsuits were filed challenging the constitutionality of the decisions. Those lawsuits were consolidated and transferred to Leon County Judge Charles Dodson.
Over the past few weeks, the legal battle went back and forth, and after the judge ruled in favor of the Florida Education Association, the Hillsborough County School District had the right to legally follow its Aug. 3 ruling.
After a passionate discussion among board members on Friday, they officially voted to rescind their Aug. 3 ruling and fall back on their July 23 ruling of allowing the three learning choices for parents. Superintendent Addison Davis recommended the solution saying the district also ran the risk of losing more than $200 million in funding from the state if they did not allow kids to go back into the classroom.
Despite the passing vote, not all were on board with it.
Teachers speaking during public comment voiced concern for safety and one speaker listed off names of teachers who have already died from coronavirus. But parents were adamant, demanding they want their kids back in school regardless of the pandemic because it's how they learn best and many voiced the inconvenience of not having their kids at school.
The final board vote was 5-2 with board members Grey, Stuart, Hahn, Snively and Cona voting yes and Shamburger and Perez voting no.
Post-vote discussions included questions about when would they decide to close a school based on rates of teacher illness.
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