“It is a very difficult time for families to figure out how to support their children in online learning while also juggling their own work responsibilities, especially for younger children who need support and guidance and supervision,” said Robyn Lightcap, executive director of Learn to Earn Dayton, which works with schools and child care providers across the region.
Two Butler County districts — Middletown and Talawanda — have started with all remote learning, and New Miami will start remote learning on Tuesday. That same day, Ross will start with alternate-day scheduling.
All other local school districts and local private schools are in session, and some provide “hybrid” learning, which is a combination of alternate-day, in-person classroom learning and remote learning at home during different days of the school week as designated by the first letter of a student’s last name.
Having students taking virtual classes at home has left some parents deciding between going to work or staying home with their children.
Several employees at the Community Building Institute at the Robert “Sonny” Hill Jr. Community Center in Middletown have created an educational hub, said Marie Edwards, a mother of two and program manager.
She said the nine employees at CBI bring their children to work, and employees take shifts helping the 17 children with their class work. Edwards said CBI is not a licensed child care so it’s not open to the public.
Edwards understands the struggles virtual learning have created for working parents, but she said jobs still need to be done.
“I know their pain,” she said.
She called the pilot program “a win-win” because it allows the employees an opportunity to work while their children complete their studies.
The Rev. Shaquila Mathews, founder of Hamilton Young People Empowered (H.Y.P.E.), also is reporting success at the study hall held in the former Journal-News building in downtown Hamilton.
“The process is working,” she said. “It’s been a great experience so far.”
The program started on Aug. 24, the first day of classes for Hamilton City Schools. She said adults supervise the children and serve as tutors.
There are five children in the program on Mondays and Tuesdays and closer to 15 the rest of the week, Mathews said. The program is offered to sixth- through ninth-graders enrolled in remote or virtual learning. Those in attendance receive breakfast, lunch and a snack, she said.
Mathews, known as Pastor Shaq, has two children in the Hamilton City Schools district, so she understands the struggles parents face this school year when they balance their careers with teaching their children at home.
First Baptist Church Day Care in Middletown has created a virtual learning center for local students, said Cindy Sparks, who recently celebrated her 30th year in the business.
She said each of the students’ curriculum schedules have been printed and teachers “float” around the room to see if anyone needs assistance.
There are about 65 children in the day care and First Baptist has room for about 125 students, she said. She said the academic arrangement is “a great service” because working parents “need their income and they need our help.”
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