Pennsbury School District Parents, Students Express Frustration With All-Online Learning During Rally
BUCKS COUNTY, Pa. (CBS) -- Frustration is mounting for some parents and students in the Pennsbury School District in Bucks County. They want to know why kids can't have some sort of in-person learning.
Like schools in Philadelphia, the Pennsbury School District is also in an all-virtual setting right now. New of an extension of that has parents very upset.
Calls for the Pennsbury School District to open its schools and bring kids back into the classrooms have brought parents and students together for an emotional rally Friday.
"Sitting in the kitchen in the dark, tears streaming down my face and feeling totally defeated. I'm honestly not sure how many more days like this I can take or that my boys can take," parent Lisa Rice said. "Autism meltdowns and anxiety attacks are both mentally and physically exhausting. I'm tired."
"We are sitting there stressed out because sometimes network or connection issues happen," one student said.
One by one, students and parents gave their accounts about the difficulties surrounding virtual learning.
"I am just appalled at how this school district has handled this situation. Our kids deserve better. If our kids can play tackle football -- which, by the way, I'm all in favor of -- then they can go back to school," parent Larisa Girsh said.
Pennsbury school officials have pushed in-person learning back to February, citing rising COVID-19 concerns.
The school district superintendent sent Eyewitness News this statement, saying in part that the district will continue to work with parents to accommodate their needs.
"We will also continue to monitor local conditions, state and county guidelines, and the wishes of our School Board as we look forward to one day returning to our school buildings for in-person instruction and the many school activities that our students traditionally enjoy," Dr. William Gretzula said.
School officials say they are letting the metrics dictate exactly when schools can reopen safely.