Bill to resume in-person learning in North Carolina public schools advances to full House vote

(The Center Square) – Despite counteraction from Democrats, the North Carolina House is poised to vote on a Republican-proposed bill that would resume full in-person learning in North Carolina schools.

The House Committee on Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House gave Senate Bill 37 a favorable vote Wednesday, advancing it to the full House for a vote.

SB 37 requires all K-12 schools to resume in-person learning for students with special needs without social distancing and all other K-12 classrooms to operate based on school districts’ discretion.

The bill cleared the Senate on Tuesday with a 29-15 vote.

“School closures are not just an education crisis for students in North Carolina, they are also causing disastrous economic and mental health outcomes for struggling families,” House Speaker Tim Moore, R-Cleveland, said.

The rules committee approved an amendment Wednesday that would allow teachers who are high-risk or are caretakers of children or adults at risk for severe complications from COVID-19 to opt out of in-person learning instruction.

Gov. Roy Cooper ordered all K-12 schools to convert to remote learning in March, during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

After scientific data pointed to lower risks in younger children, Cooper called Oct. 5 for full attendance in K-5 public and charter schools. Cooper said last week K-5 public schools should resume in-person learning without the 6-foot social distancing requirement, referred to as Plan A in the state’s guidance, and sixth- through 12th-graders should operate under Plan B, which entails smaller classrooms with social distancing.

Under SB 37, introduced by Sen. Deanna Ballard, R-Watauga, K-12 classrooms without students with special needs could choose to between Plan A or B. Classrooms that require exceptional needs would operate under Plan A.

Parents still can select remote learning for their children under SB 37, which applies only to the remainder of the 2020-2021 school year. School boards would have the ability to choose the best option for their schools and switch from in-person to remote learning based on COVID-19 rates as long as they give the North Carolina Department of Instruction a 72-hour warning.

If the bill becomes law, schools would have 15 days to follow the reopening plan.

Democrats filed a counter bill to SB 37 earlier Wednesday. The Democrats’ reopening bill, Senate Bill 78, allows K-5 schools to choose between Plan A and B, but 6-12 schools would resume learning under Plan B unless health officials issue guidance that says otherwise.

Sen. Don Davis, D-Greene, one of the bill’s sponsors, previously filed a similar amendment to SB 37, but it was struck down during the Senate’s second reading of the bill last week.

Davis and other critics of the Republican bill said it doesn’t consider the lack of scientific research on COVID-19 transmission among middle-school and high-school students. The North Carolina Association of Educators, the state’s largest education advocacy organization for public school employees, said teachers want to resume in-person instruction but “with the resources to happen safely.”

Cooper said last week, at least 90 of the state’s 115 school districts are providing in-person instruction for some or all of their students. Lawmakers said Wednesday, the number of remote-only schools might be lower.

The governor also announced a plan Wednesday to start vaccinating teachers Feb. 24.

“I am grateful to all of our educators and school personnel for going above and beyond in this pandemic to care for children and help them continue to learn,” Cooper said.

Cooper signed Senate Bill 36 on Wednesday. It’s $2.2 billion COVID-19 relief bill that provides $1.6 billion to help North Carolina schools reopen.

“We are listening to health and education experts, working in a bipartisan manner, and securing the necessary budget funds to support a safe reopening of North Carolina schools to help desperate parents and their children overcome the learning loss of the last year,” Moore said.

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