Written by Julianne Foster
There is a lot of uncertainty surrounding the educational direction to take for the coming fall semester. Schools at all levels have been restricted by Gov. Gavin Newsom’s sweeping policies. While K-12 schools are dealing with a statewide lockdown order, universities were struggling to make decisions with no official rules to follow from Newsom.
Universities only received word recently, a matter of weeks before classes start, which offered little time to fully finish reopening preparations. As education officials, teachers, students, and parents remain conflicted about which path to choose, online learning, in-person classes or a hybrid schedule, rural schools are offering a solution.
Around 164,000 of the 6.1 million K-12 students in California are located in rural counties that are in position to reopen schools for the fall. Although rural districts have some different challenges, the safe openings of rural districts can serve as case studies for the rest of the state. They can give insights on when and how to bring students back safely, especially since their case and death rates remain extremely low.
These sparsely populated rural counties in California are committed and prepared to reopen their schools. However, they are in need of such power to make those decisions since they know what’s best for their residents. The importance of having more local control could mean supporting students, parents, and teachers by allowing them to safely return to their normal lives as much as possible.
