By Paola Tristan Arruda | September 29, 2020 at 12:34 AM EDT - Updated September 29 at 4:24 AM
DORCHESTER COUNTY, S.C. (WCSC) - Some Dorchester District 2 parents say they want their kids back in school and claim the district isn’t holding up their end of the bargain.
These parents held a protest outside of Monday’s school board meeting to demand a choice for 5-day face-to-face instruction. Currently, the school district is operating under a hybrid model.
Justin Roberson has five children that go to DD2 schools. He says virtual learning has been tough and he is fighting for parents that have struggled with teaching their children.
“Let’s just liberate these students, liberate these parents, and bring everybody to a choice, and that choice is to get them back to school,” Roberson said.
Dwight Decker, another parent at the protest, believes it is time for students to have face-to-face contact with their teachers. He said it seemed like the school district was pushing in-person instruction further back.
“Why are we not getting the full-time instruction that our kids need? The kids I really feel sorry for are the kids with special needs because they don’t get the face to face time and they need that,” Dwight said.
Hundreds of parentshave also signed a petition to reopen schools. During the meeting, school board members spoke for almost an hour about the need to bring children back into school.
School board member, Barbara Crosby, said she has wanted in-person instruction since the beginning.
“I’m supporting that one hundred percent, and I’ve said 5 days from the beginning and I’m sticking by it. The kids need to be face-to-face," she said.
Crosby pushed for an earlier start date for full face-to-face instruction.
While the board members did agree they want children back in school full-time, there was hesitation about how soon. Superintendent Joe Pye said that they need to consider the health and safety of everyone first. The members agreed they want to make sure they are doing things safely.
School board members will meet on Oct. 5 to discuss plans and protocols that may involve sending students back to school for 5 days.
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