Parents could be biggest issue for Metro Detroit schools making COVID-19 safety changes

Summer school provides glimpse of what fall could look like

DETROIT – Summer school is offering lessons about what education in Metro Detroit might look like with coronavirus (COVID-19) safety measures in place this fall.

Much of the concern about returning to in-person classes has centered around children being unpredictable, but so far, schools are finding the real wildcard can often be parents.

Schools in Metro Detroit plan to have some version of in-person learning this fall, using the current summer school model as a dress rehearsal.

One thing that’s become clear to Novi educators: Students thus far are amenable to the changes necessary to keep them safe, but parents are emerging as a bigger problem that could throw a kink into the protocols.

Educators said students who take the virus seriously are alarmed. But some parents cause students to become holes in the chain link fence of safety precautions that school districts are trying to build for in-person learning.

You can watch Paula Tutman’s full story in the video posted above.


About the Authors:

Paula Tutman is an Emmy award-winning journalist who came to Local 4 in 1992. She's married and the stepmother of three beautiful and brilliant daughters. Her personal philosophy in life, love and community is, "Do as much as you can possibly do, not as little as you can possibly get away with".

Derick is the Lead Digital Editor for ClickOnDetroit and has been with Local 4 News since April 2013. Derick specializes in breaking news, crime and local sports.