District, Parents Prepare For First Day Of School In Brookline

BROOKLINE, MA — The day before the first day of instruction in Brookline, parents told Patch they were busy testing their home internet and computers in preparation for a school year different from any year on record.

Educators and families in Brookline and across the country have been working for months on preparing for school amid pandemic. It's been said repeatedly that this is an unprecedented time, and although some families still said they wished they had more information, they also were quick to indicate they felt the district was working hard.

"Wednesday is a benchmark, it's not a destination," Interim School Superintendent Jim Marini told the School Committee Monday night.

A number of Brookline parents Patch spoke to said they felt they were prepared as best they could be ahead of Wednesday's opening day.

In August, the school committee voted to allow the youngest students and most vulnerable populations back to school for in-person learning, and later phase in the older grades if families should choose to return to partial in-person learning. The district is also giving families the choice to have their children attend school fully online.

Plans and details and hiring and prep inside the buildings was happening around the clock, Marini said.

But not everyone felt they knew what was going on.

Less than 20 hours before the new school year started, at least a few parents took to social media, expressing confusion as to whether their students would be returning to school in person or not.

Last week families with children in pre-kindergarten and some children with special needs between grades 1-12 received a letter from the district that indicated who would be among the first to return to in-person learning. But, some parents complained that beyond that, they got few details.

"My kid doesn't know whether she's going to school or staying home," one parent posted to Facebook. "Does anyone have any insights into this, or is anyone else in the same boat?"

Another parent of a student whose child was set to go to school online said she was surprised to see that it would be at least six weeks - or until at least the end of October- before the district would begin opening up for more in-person learning in other grades.

After school starts, the district will turn its full attention to the hybrid plan, Marini said.

Read more:

Brookline Votes On Phased In-Person School Reopening

5 Things To Know About Back To School In Brookline - Patch

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