Pierce County school districts debate whether to have shorter school years due to wildfires
The hundreds of acres burned and at least nine homes destroyed in Pierce County meant the first week of school didn’t happen at the Sumner-Bonney Lake School District.
Puyallup and Orting school districts were forced to cancel school for one and two days, respectively.
Now, the districts are deciding whether to ask the state for a waiver to have a shorter school year or tack on added days in June.
The state requires schools to have a minimum of 180 days of instruction. The Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction could grant school districts a waiver in emergencies for school years with fewer school days.
The multiple wildfires in Pierce County affected Sumner, Bonney Lake and Graham. The Sumner Grade fire had burned more than 800 acres by the afternoon of Friday, Sept. 11, East Pierce Fire & Rescue said on Twitter.
Graham saw more than 275 acres scorched by a fire caused by downed power lines. Bethel School District, which serves portions of Graham, did not cancel school despite a fire that destroyed part of a neighborhood there, communications director Doug Boyles said.
Sumner-Bonney Lake
Sumner-Bonney Lake School District communications director Elle Warmuth said they will apply for state waivers if they become available.
“If available and approved, the waivers will allow the District to waive the number of school days missed,” Warmuth said. “Instructional minutes will still be met.”
The district has 9,740 students.
Some district families were displaced in the fires.
“We’re unsure exactly how many are affected,” Warmuth said.
Warmuth said the delay does not impact the staged approach to returning the classroom due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Orting
The Orting School District, which has 2,665 students, plans to use two snow days to make up for the two days its students missed, Superintendent Tony Apostle said in an email. Feb. 12 and May 28 will be used.
All facilities are up and running.
The phased return to school from remote learning will not be impacted, Apostle said.
A few staff members and families have been impacted by the fires.
“I do not know the full extent of the fire’s impact on their homes, property damage or any specific losses,” the superintendent said. “The District stands ready to support and help these families.”
Puyallup
The Puyallup School District missed one day and could choose to use May 28 as a make-up day, communications director Sarah Gillispie said.
With school board approval, the district is also looking to send an emergency waiver to OSPI for the lost day of instruction.
All district buildings have power, Gillispie said. None of the district’s 22,638 students has been reported as displaced due to the fires.
The district is planning to provide an option for elementary students to return to school in-person in late September, Gillispie said. That COVID-19 phased plan will continue forward.
Bethel
While school in the 20,664-student district was not canceled because of the fires, there were some families east of state Route 161 who were displaced, Boyles said.
The number of impacted families is still to be determined. Boyles said some families have been evacuated and some lost homes. Some are still struggling to get power. Two students came into Graham-Kapowsin High to attend school online because they had no WiFi.
“The number changes from day to day,” Boyles said. “The first concern is not how I am going to get to school, but how am I going to be safe. “
