PORTLAND, Ore. — Students in many school districts across Oregon and Washington have already started limited in-person instruction, or in other cases hybrid learning. But there are others that aren’t there yet.
For one mom who has kids attending school in the David Douglas School District, it’s been frustrating. Leah Hadley is mom to six kids. Two of them are school age.
“I have Marissa who is 12 and Malaki who is almost 10. They attend Cherry Park at David Douglas School District,” said Hadley.
She is a single, working mom, and her son Malaki has been diagnosed with an intellectual disability. All those things have made distance learning even more difficult. Hadley said sometimes her son has behavioral issues and refuses to participate in school unless someone is by his side.
“My mom is retired. So, she’s coming over to my home two days a week on Mondays and Tuesdays and doing distance learning with my children,” Hadley said.
The other part of the week, Hadley is staying home and using up her sick time to do it. On Fridays, the kids’ dad takes over.
Her 12-year-old daughter Marissa is also having a tough time. Hadley said she’s been dealing with depression due to isolation. She said her daughter drew a picture for her mom, to communicate how she’s feeling.
“She drew me a picture of a girl and her mouth was all covered up like she didn’t have a voice,” said Hadley.
“She’s going through a great deal of depression," Hadley said of Marissa. "I have actually had to request some services for the depression … I mean you see your classmates online but you can’t even talk to them there’s no social interaction at all and it’s just been a really horrible experience for our family.”
Hadley is frustrated the David Douglas School District hasn’t offered parents the option of limited in-person instruction, also known as LIPI, for kids who need extra help. It’s something other districts have had for months.
“To not even have LIPI be started right now or not even fine-tuned is very disappointing as a parent,” said Hadley.
A spokesperson for the district said schools are still developing plans for limited in-person instruction, with the goal of starting on April 5. But hybrid learning may not be in the cards. School board member Stephanie Stephens confirmed the board recently voted to stay in distance learning for the remainder of the year with the exception of limited in-person instruction.
Hadley is keenly aware of other larger districts, like Portland Public Schools, which has said it plans to start hybrid learning in April.
“Just very disappointing that the district is so behind in this,” she said.
At a school board meeting last month Hadley said Stephens’ opinion on the feasibility of hybrid learning added insult to injury.
“If [hybrid] is feasible, I don’t think it’s worth it," Stephens said during the board meeting. "I don’t think it’s worth it for the stress it would put on teachers. I don’t think it’s worth it for the amount of money it’s going to cost. We don’t know where that money is going to come from, right? That’s a personal opinion."
“My children’s mental health is worth every single penny being spent and I am just mortified that as a board member and as a parent she would even say such a thing,” Hadley said.
Stephens responded with a statement saying she deeply cares about every child’s education, being a parent herself to two David Douglas School District elementary school children. She said in part, “we are keeping a close eye on the metrics, the case numbers, and the ever-evolving science in the event that conditions change. I know that our families and our children are struggling.”
Stephens said she plans to talk to more parents in the coming weeks about how students have been impacted.
Another board meeting is scheduled for this Thursday. A district spokesperson said there may be more clarity on in-person learning plans after that.