As virus spreads, some Idaho teachers add a somber task to back-to-school checklists
With the countdown on to the first day of school, teachers around the Treasure Valley are bracing themselves for an unusual fall semester. And just as many aspects of back-to-school preparation have changed in the era of the coronavirus pandemic, this summer has brought a new, and somewhat gloomy, addition to the typical checklist:
Making sure your affairs are in order.
“I don’t normally update my will for going back to school,” said Layne Ward, 51, a teacher at Eagle High School.
Ward, whose average class size in normal times is 30 students, said the biggest change to the will was making his oldest daughter the designated guardian of his youngest, who will be starting her senior year of high school.
“My wife works day care and I, of course, work in school. So we are going to have a lot more exposure (to the virus) then maybe some other jobs,” Ward said. “I have respiratory issues and I don’t think this is going to happen, but if the worst possibly happens, we just want to make sure everything is in order. It’s not like we are terrified, we just want to be prepared.”
How school unfolds across Idaho is still a bit of a question mark. Most districts seem to be ready for a hybrid semester, with a mix of in-person classes and online learning. Some, like the Nampa School District did Thursday night, will start as online-only. Any sort of reopening of schools puts students, teachers and administrators in situations where — even with social distancing and face coverings required — the conditions for an outbreak are ripe, health officials have said.
Connie Griesmyer, 63, has been teaching for 15 years, most recently at Ridgevue High School in the Vallivue School District as a Spanish teacher. She said her father recently passed away from COVID-19 and her sister is quarantining in Arizona after testing positive.
She said she’s been in the process of going through her father’s paperwork and wants to make sure her daughter does not have to do the same if Griesmyer would contract the disease and have the worst happen.
“I consider myself a healthy, active person. But right now, you don’t know who will get it. At the beginning it was those 65 and up, but now it’s everybody and anybody,” Griesmyer said. “I would rather be safe than sorry when it comes to finances.”
Amber Ford, 33, who is at Vallivue High School, will be going into her 11th year of teaching, and she said making sure you have your will in order is simply an act of preparedness.
“A part of my concern is I am single, I am a homeowner and I do have student loan debt and those things, and I wouldn’t want my mom having to wade through all that and not know what she is doing,” Ford said. “Losing someone is already overwhelming enough, and to compound the confusion and all of the craziness of having to work out their affairs, I just want to make sure my family doesn’t have to go through that.”
Ford said that typically her class size would be right around 30, with 36 being the largest. Teaching as many as six English classes a day, and often being asked to cover for teachers, would increase the likelihood of her getting sick.
Ford also pointed out that the difficulty in finding substitute teachers will grow, because many of them are older or retired and might not feel comfortable coming in. This could result in increased exposure for teachers who have to cover for each other once in-person classes are taking place regularly.
“For me, I don’t think there is a death sentence hanging over me, but it did make me think, ‘Wow, if I did get seriously ill, and something did happen to me, I need to have a plan in place so my family is not stuck trying to figure out the details,’” Ford said.
The Boise School District is re-evaluating its in-person plans for school, as are most districts, as they consult with state education officials and local health districts.
A letter to parents and teachers in the West Ada School District said it is following a color-coded framework and hopes to start in “green,” which would mean buildings are open with psychical distancing. The Vallivue School District and others have a similar color-based plan to follow, but seeing “green” might just be a fantasy in the Treasure Valley, as cases soar in Ada and Canyon counties.
The Caldwell School District has already delayed its first day of school and will require masks as it implements an alternate-day schedule. Central District Health has said that all schools in Ada County must have a face-covering requirement.
The teachers say they will return to school once the format for their district is set, and they look forward to working with parents to create healthy and safe learning environments. Still, the specter of the virus looms.
“I love my students! ... I am a hyper person, I have stamina, and every day is a challenge with my students,” Griesmyer said. “We want to be there and to be there for the students. I want to go back to school.”
