Local middle school parents upset over lack of face time with teachers

Posted by Hillview Mom
a resident of Menlo Park: other
on Jan 22, 2021 at 2:13 pm
Hillview Mom is a registered user.

I second what Shani stated in this article. There are incredible demands that have been placed on our local MPC School District, and I feel they have done an amazing job getting our children back to school safely, while setting the expectations clearly with parents that our children would NOT receive 100% of the instructional minutes provided before Covid 19. Of the family and friends I know across the country, my son is one of the few who is benefiting from going to campus, 5 days - every other week, and this is a gift to him...and his mental health. I am very grateful for the herculean efforts led by Erik Burmeister, with his district office staff, Hillview Staff, the teachers' union, and the school board who have made this happen! MPCSD also distributes ongoing surveys to parents, continues to provide food and services to those families in need, all while being incredibly responsive and trying to help address any parent concerns along the way. (As a comparison, my daughter in High School will likely be remote for the entire school year.)

A pandemic is not normal times, it also is not going to be normal schooling. My son is learning so much about sacrifice in challenging times, becoming more independent, discovering new solo outdoor sports and activities, learning new computer skills, volunteering to serve meals at the Boys and Girls Club, as well as appreciating the privilege of making connections with other students during his in-person weeks at school. It's not perfect, but let's ALL, as a community, come together, to appreciate and support these incredible efforts to bring some normalcy to our students.

Posted by Encinal, Hillview, SUHSD mom
a resident of Menlo Park: Suburban Park/Lorelei Manor/Flood Park Triangle
on Jan 22, 2021 at 5:28 pm
Encinal, Hillview, SUHSD mom is a registered user.

Sigh. This year has been hard for everyone, and it's demonstrably harder for some families than others. But with a few exceptions, the middle schoolers in Ravenswood and Redwood City have *no* in-person instruction. Los Altos just opened for 6th graders, maybe even this week?

Meanwhile, MPCSD is doing a herculean job of offering both a fully staffed, quality Virtual Academy, and a COVID-safe hybrid model. Our children have had the option of in-person instruction since October. Many of the resources available to our district are not available to others, and this is crucial to acknowledge and address as we go forward in this public school system. But all the money in the world is not sufficient to pull this off -- our teachers, administrators, staff are working tirelessly to make school happen, all while managing their own family situations. *Our kids are so lucky.*

In the middle of a worldwide pandemic and political unrest, MPCSD has managed to create a completely new, functioning academic model -- AND devote significant staff and teacher time and energy to examining systemic racism and work for justice in the school system. This is *amazing.* Why isn't the Almanac writing stories about this?