OMAHA, Neb. — School for Omaha Public Schools students starts Tuesday 100 percent virtually. At Monday night's school board meeting the board thanked educators and students for being so flexible but also explained that there's bound to be bumps in the road.
"Parents if you could just be very patient as I know that things will not be perfect tomorrow. There's something that's bound to go wrong but if you could just be very patient, this is new territory for all of us," OPS board member Dr. Shavonna Holman said at Monday evening's meeting.
As the board encourages patience, some parents just don't have it anymore and are frustrated with the fully remote plan. OPS parent Jeremiah Wilson got escorted from the podium for going over his time during public comment. We caught up with Wilson who said his special needs student just cannot learn remotely.
"We have to think about advocating for the rights of the children that are disabled because they are the most disadvantaged," Wilson said.
Educators went over plans for all grade levels so parents can prepare for a successful first day and first semester. Board president Marque Snow addressed his pride in the district for taking initiative with a fully remote plan despite some criticism from parents.
"People will remember this moment. They'll remember the moment when Omaha Public Schools and the city of Omaha took the right step in history. We protected our community and did not experiment with the virus," he said.
Also during the meeting, child care workers expressed concern over what remote learning will look like at day care centers and say they feel burdened with the new responsibility. The board promised to help them navigate their new roles helping children with remote learning and staying on top of school.
