CINCINNATI — An email and phone survey conducted the week of July 6th revealed what Cincinnati Public Schools parents think about their children returning to school, participating in online classes and whether they have adequate childcare.
The survey includes more than 10,000 responses from parents across the district.
The majority of parents will send their kids to school in the fall, but approximately 25% aren’t sure.
“I don’t think that I’m even going to send him back to school,” said Donna Bivens, parent of a third grader. “I think I’m going to do the online for the rest because how they can possibly control the coronavirus in the school system.”
Bivens is working to find a sitter and is concerned about COVID-19 spreading.
“Thinking about the teachers getting sick, me getting sick, me spreading it to my coworkers,” she said. “It’s a possibility that we could all get sick because they’re willing to send the kids back to school.”
The majority of parents in the survey answered "no" to the CPS digital academy, but many are still unsure.
“For those parents that aren’t able to have online access, think about opening the schools to just that population who doesn’t have access to internet who can’t afford it so then your class sizes will naturally be smaller,” said Tiffani Williams, parent to a third grade CPS student.
The district has already said it will provide internet access and a device for every one of it’s students.
Landis Coulter, father of two kids in CPS schools, said he’d rather keep his two boys home full time.
“It’s just tough,” he said. “We just got to pray for the best.”
His biggest concern: “Safety,” Coulter said.
School starts Aug. 24 – if Hamilton County is raised to the "level 4/purple" crisis level for the spread of COVID-19, school plans could change again.
