Two politicians lead Gig Harbor rally demanding ‘Open Our Schools’

About 100 people, including parents and children, gathered opposite a Gig Harbor school site on Thursday night in a rally to demand the opening of Peninsula schools in the fall.

Among the demonstrators were state Rep. Jesse Young (R-Gig Harbor), and Maia Espinoza, a conservative candidate for state superintendent of schools.

“I am heartened by the number of parents who came out to show their support for students to continue to learn,” said Espinoza. “This is a unique time, but every day can have a dramatic and long-lasting affect for children.”

“Online learning is just one component for school,” Espinoza said. “The education piece is important, but the interaction is so important for student mental health. By playing it safe we are taking a risk on our kids.”

‘I hate Zoom’

The politicians, parents and students lined the sidewalk in front of the Gig Harbor YMCA on Harbor Hill Drive, which faces the site of an elementary school under construction.

They carried signs demanding “Open ‘Our’ Schools,” and “Distance learning causes loss of learning, depression, suicide.” One child carried a sign that read, “I hate Zoom and online school, I want to go back.” One young woman wore a white graduation mortarboard.

Most were wearing masks, though a few were not, and there was an effort made to keep social distancing. Some cars passing by honked and the drivers waved.

Jenn Bunch, a parent, has three children, including a 14-year-old at Peninsula High School. She thinks the district could “safely and effectively open our schools” if it wanted to.

“We are hoping this is a preview, and the school district will listen to their parents,” she said. “We have a winning team. We have all the parents in the community behind us wanting to open schools, and that’s why we are out here.”

Demand for choice

Young said parents should be offered a choice of online or in-person school.

“Surely there is a way to do it,” he said. “If these schools can be used for day care, but not education, there is a contradiction there and parents want that figured out.”

Until the recent surge in coronavirus cases, the district had planned a “dual-track” system in which parents could choose between sending their children back to school or keeping them at home to study online. The district estimated that from 15 to 20 percent of children would opt to study online, and that would free up space in the schools for social distancing.

But that plan went out the window in July, the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department warned that opening schools for in-person learning this fall would be unsafe

“Based on the COVID-19 disease activity in Pierce County and our region, I do not feel it is safe to open schools in September for traditional classroom learning,” Dr. Anthony Chen, the department’s director of health, said in a statement to superintendents on Thursday, July 24.

The same evening, The Peninsula School Board approved a re-opening plan that calls for “full remote learning” when classes resume Sept. 8, and bringing students back for in-person learning “later this year if possible.”

The Peninsula District’s announcement follows similar decisions by many other school district in Pierce County, including Tacoma, Puyallup, Bethel, Franklin Pierce, and University Place.

Cases still climbing

Dr. Chen’s warning to school superintendents came as COVID-19 cases soared across the county and the state, and they remain high. in August. A few hours before the “Open Our Schools” demonstration, the health department posted the latest figures: 5,846 confirmed cases and 130 deaths, the latest on Wednesday.

Gig Harbor had 153 confirmed cases, and the Key Peninsula had 40. There have been three local deaths.

Early opening of schools in the South and Midwest have led to new infections and quarantines on the first days of school in places like Indiana and Georgia.

But Young cited a poll taken by the district, before the second coronavirus wave, that found 70 percent of parents were willing to send their children back to school.

“Seventy percent is a very high number, and the school board should listen to their constituents,” he said. “It’s that high because the impact on these kids is really severe.”

‘’We want another option’

“If we are so rural, or we are talking about low income kids who can’t afford access, how does that work for them? That’s the number one concern for me, those parents don’t have a solution. We want another option rather than a straight mandate up front.”

“Think about the depression stats, drug usage, dropout rates,” Young continued. “What will it do to these kids for life impacting health statistics? We need to take care of Covid-19, but there has to be some way to open up schools as these other health factors are important.”

Young said many teachers want to go back, too.

“They don’t think their opinion is being represented by the unions,” he said. “A lot of these teachers really care about these students, they’ve built a relationship with potential seniors, and they know the impact it will have on the students future career. I know there are teachers who support some type of opening.”

Espinoza, who emerged from the top-two primary election with about 25 percent of the vote, is set to challenge the incumbent Chris Reykdal, who had 40 percent in a crowded field, for the nonpartisan post of Superintendent of Public Instruction in the November general election.

She is known for her opposition to a mandatory comprehensive sex education law passed by the state Legislature.

In Gig Harbor on Thursday, she said online learning shortchanges students who need social interaction.

“It’s so important for young students,” she said. “At this point, they would be happy to play with masks on. These kids desperately want to see their friends. Particularly for elementary kids, it’s devastating to have this social distancing and not see their friends with no end in sight. “

“Parents understand the risk, and appreciate that their kid could get sick, and that could make them sick. If you have a family member who is at risk, that child should not go to school. We understand the risk, but there needs to be options.”

This story was originally published August 13, 2020 at 12:00 AM.