ALAMANCE COUNTY, N.C. — Mold continues to follow ABSS schools.
It's forced Alamance-Burlington Schools Systems to delay the start of school —again, this time to Sept. 11.
The mold remediation for these schools costs nearly $17 million. The district said it will hire around 2,000 contractors to help with the cleanup.
The district is working to get students back to class. However, some parents are wondering if there's another option —online learning.
With the start of the ABSS school year being delayed twice, more and more parents are wondering why the district isn't just going virtual, but the district said going virtual is not an option.
It's not an option because they would have to deploy Chromebooks, get hotspots, and acquire money from county commissioners to purchase "minutes" to activate at-home learning online, according to the district.
Plus, they said they learned from virtual learning during the pandemic that Kindergarten through 8th grade students do not learn as well in that environment. Instead, they have looked at other options, like the possibility of shifting students to other schools if necessary.
While many parents are wondering why the district is not going virtual, other parents have some concerns about going virtual as well.
“Virtual in our house worked well for one child. It did not work well for the other. It is academically difficult for some of these kids. Kids that need more support, kids that need therapy, and those things that happen on school grounds. Virtual makes that very difficult for them to be able to tap into those resources,” ABSS parent Stephanie Gordon shared.
In the meantime, ABSS is also working to set up food sites for students who receive free or reduced lunch.
The district said teachers will be allowed to set up their classrooms on Sept. 8.
You can track Alamance-Burlington Schools' mold remediation progress on their website.
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