Teachers, administrators and school boards are working through their plans on how to reopen schools safely this fall, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
"I always tell my school board members that they've signed up for one of the hardest jobs there is," said North Dakota School Boards Association executive director Alexis Baxley. "For those board members elected in June, they really opted to come in during an unprecedented time."
Baxley said the boards as facing a lot of difficult decisions. She said the board members have to deal with some key issues, as they make decisions on how to reopen schools safely.
"Whether they're going to require masks," Baxley said. "Are teachers going to feel comfortable? Are students going to be comfortable with coming back? They're really trying to gather as much information as they can before finalizing their plans."
Baxley said the school boards are consulting with their staff and with their patrons.
"I would ask that anyone who is providing feedback to a school, to do it thoughtfully and with grace," Baxley said. "Every district in the state is doing the best job it can to take care of their students and staff. But they're hard questions, and no matter what answers you come up with, somebody's going to be unhappy."
