EDITORIAL: CCSD to open up for lunch, not learning

It’s too dangerous to bring students to school to learn, but it’s safe enough to bring them in for lunch. Such is the Clark County School District’s current logic.

Superintendent Jesus Jara initially suggested sending students back for two days of in-person classes a week. As Nevada’s coronavirus cases continued to increase, the district reversed course. Trustees recently approved a plan for full-time distance learning to start the school year.

“Reopening schools incorrectly could have devastating consequences,” Trustee Danielle Ford said.

But there also will be devastating consequences for students who fall further behind academically. Schools around the world have reopened without a noticeable uptick in infections. For elementary school students, the virus has been less deadly than the flu.

But at least the district’s position seemed clear: It’s too dangerous to bring kids to school.

Except when it’s not.

Mr. Jara recently told a virtual town hall that the district is going to bus children to schools to pick up lunches. Say what? School transportation was among the biggest challenges facing the district. The space is small and confined. Buses would need cleaning between trips. But apparently district officials have it figured out — except when kids are actually being transported to sit in classrooms.

What’s especially odd about this is that the district has been handing out food at meal distribution sites for months. It would make more sense to continue that. Another possibility would be delivering meals to neighborhood sites and having children come and pick up their food.

But kids may still end up at school for another reason. Single-parent households and families in which both parents work need the child care that schools provide. That’s a problem Clark County Commission Chairwoman Marilyn Kirkpatrick and the Multi-Agency Coordination Center are working to fix. She’s trying to find locations able to collectively accommodate up to 100,000 students. That’s the estimate of how many children may need a place to go while their parents work.

The most obvious locations are where kids are supposed to be — school buildings. She wrote a letter asking the Board of Trustees to open them. “The MACC is requesting that you consider the possibility of allowing the use of your facilities,” she wrote. “The request to use your facilities would allow broader access to childcare in the Southern Nevada community.”

It’s unclear what response the district has given.

As the school year starts, children won’t be learning in district buildings. But don’t be surprised if you find them there.