The following column is the opinion and analysis of the writer.
Over the summer, it became clear that more than 60% of the families at my school did not have access to an internet connection robust enough to support online learning. Learning that was carefully crafted over the summer, by teachers with a 10 month contract, working on their own time, to be ready for their scholars in the fall.
School started and more problems surfaced. The Wi-Fi hotspot on Mom’s phone is not strong enough to keep a Zoom class from crashing. The Firestick cuts out in the middle of synchronous learning, depriving the students of the interactions which make school, school.
Cox and Comcast have a generous program available to low-income families; two months of free service, including tech support and installation, then $9.95 per month. But for most of our families, even that’s an insurmountable obstacle.
For a community that values the least among us, which understands that we rise and fall on the quality of the education our students receive, $100 per family seems like a small price to pay. The Amphi Foundation has money ready to help. My small, nonprofit has access to what seemed like a very large grant, until we began to count the number of families in need. This is a systemic issue that needs a systemic answer. And yet, there is nothing approaching a comprehensive plan for these students, although Monday marked the start of the second week of school.
I’ve been the official adopted grandmother of Prince Elementary School for 10 years. The students and staff helped me heal, after the doctors and the therapists had done all they could. We walked around the playground, reciting our A-B-C’s, solving math problems, making up rhymes as they corrected my gait.
Learning takes place inside and outside the classroom; I was part of an army of professionals and volunteers dedicated to creating a new generation of Americans ... until we weren’t any more, and those personal connections vanished.
On the first day of school, instead of leaving sweet treats at every Amphi campus, I dropped off donated masks and double-clip lanyards at Prince’s “Packet Pick Up” location. There, on the floor, neatly bundled and ready to go, was kindergarten. I cried as I left.
Do we need a Go Fund Me campaign to educate our students? Is there a time when meetings stop and action begins? The providers have stepped up and done their part. The teachers have, too. Where is the leadership when we need them most?
After all, not every school has a grandma. And even grandmas can’t do it all on their own.
