Williamsville, NY (WBEN) It's been a roller coaster ride in the Williamsville School district and Tuesday marks the return of in-person classes for some students after the long ride. It's part of hybrid learning, where students will be in the classroom two days a week and learn remotely the rest of the week.
Williamsvile School Board President Teresa Leatherbarrow is happy to see the timeline sped up, as she was among the 3/4 of parents who chose the options for students to attend classes in person. She says communication has been constant. "We've been getting daily video announcements from acting superintendent Dr. John McKenna, and the board gets a weekly update, which is a lengthy email detailing what's been going on in the district, so I think we're in very good shape," says Leatherbarrow. While students in Pre-K through 4th have had in person classes since the start of the year, 5th grade and higher had to go to remote learning because of staffing issues.
7th and 8th graders will return next week, with high schoolers the week after that. She says it's been disappointing for high schoolers in particular. "Homecoming wasn't able to happen as it usually would, but we can at least get back into the schools. They can see their peers, teachers and counselors. There's nothing that compares to that," notes Leatherbarrow.
Jonathan Rich has students in 7th and 12th grades. He's confident in the cleanliness of the schools. "The district has shown it's important, making sure there's PPE. I do know the elementary kids are not social distancing, but it is hard to enforce," says Rich.
He says he's excited for his kids getting the education everyone's worked hard for, but the kids, not so much. "My daughter's supposed to go back to class next Monday. We received very limited information on what that entails," says Rich. He says he's received little on what Monday will bring. Rich does hope for less stress. "It's not just about (catching up) with friends, it's also about teachers, and about the school being a place to learn and home a place to rest. Stress has been an issue the last several weeks, and I hope that will be alleviated soon," notes Rich. He says the flex model is different from the endorsed model over districts are using.
Melanie Shah has two students returning to Casey Middle School later this week. "They're so exciting to return to school and see all their friends and get back into the swing of things," says Shah. "When they went back to school they got excited and then they got pulled out, when the district decided to put everyone back on remote. It was very inconvenient as parents had to leave work or arrange sitters. "
Shah says her children have been okay. "The teachers have been amazing. My kids have been learning and having a good time. The teachers have made the transition a good experience for my kids personally," says Shah. "I think the whole world wants to go back to some sort of normalcy, and so that's what my kids are excited about."
