After deal reached, North Carolina Senate approves new school reopening bill
(The Center Square) – After reaching an agreement with Gov. Roy Cooper, the North Carolina Senate unanimously approved a bill Wednesday to fully reopen North Carolina schools for the rest of the 2020-21 school year.
Senate Bill 220 would require all K-5 public schools to reopen with minimal social distancing, referred to as Plan A in the state’s guidance. It would give high schools and middle schools the option to chose between Plan A or Plan B, which requires full social distancing.
Sixth-grade to 12th-grade classrooms with students with special needs would be required to operate under Plan A if the measure becomes law.
“We’ve reached a compromise agreement on school reopening that returns many students to all in-person instruction,” Senate Leader Phil Berger, R-Rockingham, said. “For the past week, we’ve engaged in detailed negotiations with the governor to reach a final product. All sides have seen and agreed to the language in the bill.”
Cooper vetoed the Republican-proposed Senate Bill 37 last month. The Senate’s attempt to override failed. The bill required K-12 students with special needs to resume in-person classes without the 6-feet social distancing requirement and districts to pick the best plan for other classrooms.
Cooper said he vetoed the bill because it allowed high-school and middle-school students to return to in-person learning against public health guidance. He told lawmakers he would sign a bill without the provision and more flexibility for local officials.
SB 220 would allow high schools and middle schools to operate without the social distancing requirement when the school district partners with scientists. It calls for schools to join the ABC Science Collaborative of the School of Medicine at Duke University to collect and analyze data related to reopening. The North Carolina Department of Instruction would set aside $500,000 in federal aid for the partnership.
School districts also would be required to inform the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services of their decisions to switch plans. Parents still could select remote learning for students.
The measure would allow Cooper to close specific schools or modify their restrictions if the public health need arrives. It also restricts his ability to order statewide school closures for the rest of the school year.
Republicans and Cooper announced the agreement Wednesday morning, and the Senate fast-tracked SB 220 to a full vote by the afternoon. It cleared the Senate, 49-0.
Sen. Don Davis, D-Wake, an avid critic of SB 37, said finding consensus for the sake of “putting children first” was a “defining moment” for the General Assembly.
The North Carolina Association of Educators (NCAE), the state’s largest organization for educators and school employees, said SB 220 does not consider school staff and faculty’s health and safety.
“This agreement between the governor and leaders in the state Legislature will needlessly encourage school boards to push students, educators and staff into school buildings that do not comply with [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] guidance during a pandemic,” NCAE President Tamika Walker Kelly said in a statement.
The bill now heads to the House for consideration before being sent to Cooper, who is expected to sign it.
“Coming to agreement after acrimony isn’t always easy, but it’s the right thing to do for North Carolina,” Cooper said.
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