VIENNA, Va. — Hundreds of Fairfax County parents are scrambling to find alternate plans for their kids after Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) postponed some Extended School Year classes a few days before they were supposed to start.
“The rug was just pulled out there from them," parent Hemang Nagar said. "And there are a lot of kids, especially the special needs kids who really look forward to going to school.”
Nagar's daughter is on the autism spectrum and was supposed to begin her Extended School Year (ESY) program on Monday, June 28.
ESY services help students with special needs avoid learning loss, which has already been an issue during the pandemic.
“COVID stopped learning, [and] she regressed completely," Nagar said.
He said he received an email Wednesday that said his daughter's classes were being pushed to July 26. Since then, he said he's been trying to find a camp that has a space for his daughter.
“A lot of camps, even though they have places, they cannot accommodate kids who are on the spectrum," he said.
FCPS said it's breaking up the classes into two sessions, so some will start Monday as planned, and about 1200 students (700 virtual and 500 in-person) will have to wait a month.
The district said there were more students and fewer teachers, with a staffing shortage sitting at about 30%.
A spokesperson said that's despite multiple requests to recruit summer staff and "generous" financial incentives.
Nagar said that's no excuse.
“We know that teachers have been burned out … but … they could have found a lot of ways from March till June," Nagar said.
The advocacy group Parents of Autistic Children of Northern Virginia sent WUSA9 a statement that reads:
"Parents of Autistic Children of Northern Virginia (POAC-NoVA) is deeply concerned about the ESY staff shortage and the resulting last-minute schedule change that is causing additional stress and hardship for many of our families this summer. We are also disappointed in the lack of transparency from Fairfax County Public Schools officials regarding the possibility of the staff shortage. Most concerning is that Session II is still "tentative" for 1200 students. Denial of ESY services is a violation of every student's right to a Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE). We will continue to communicate with FCPS on this serious matter. If any families need assistance in communicating with the school district, please email president@poac-nova.org."
FCPS said no services are being denied, and they are working on staffing the second session now.
Nagar is calling for immediate action.
“Give vouchers for the parents to hire tutors to make up further learning loss, or basically get the teachers in by providing more incentives," he said.
For families who are starting on schedule Monday, it's still not smooth sailing.
Guadalupe Williamson said her son is being placed with 15 other children in special education and one teacher. She said that is twice the usual class size and violates VDOE regulations for special education programs.
In fact, Virginia law states, "No more than 14 children shall be assigned to a single class period if there are similar achievement levels and one subject area and level are taught. No more than 10 students shall be assigned to a single class period when there are varying achievement levels."
She's hoping FCPS can staff up, so her son can be in a smaller class.