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megan hanks
Sep 8, 2020, 5:06:32 PM9/8/20
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Members of the LAPS school board-
I am writing to you as a member of the Los Alamos community and mother of 5 students in the LAPS school district. My children attend LAHS, LAMS, and Barranca Mesa Elementry. As a family we are very much aware of the difficult situation we are in as a community. It goes without saying that our community and our families are struggling as we face the social, emotional and physical effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. I applaud and express my great appreciation to all in our community who are diligently working to help provide safety and social emotional resources to our families and community. Difficult decisions are being made almost daily in an effort to support the well being of the people of Los Alamos.
I recognize and appreciate the great effort that has been made by the LAPS school district, Dr. Steinhaus and the LAPS school board in these difficult times. As I listened to the most recent board meeting it was very evident that all parties within the LAPS system and the members of the community greatly desire to listen to one another and have an open mind to the needs of each person affected by the school boards decisions. I am grateful for and in support of the boards decision to move forward with the hybrid learning model.
The results of the district parent survey in which it was found that around 80% of parents are in favor of some return to in-person learning suggests it is in the best interest of the school board and district to continue ahead with that decision while recognizing there will need to be support and options given to those who are not in the majority. Making decisions for the whole of LAPS based on the needs and experience of the minority will have long lasting detrimental effects on our community.
I do not believe the remote learning model is sustainable for our families or community as a whole. Based on my experience with my 5 children ages 17, 15, 12, 11, 10, with varying levels of academic strengths and weaknesses, varying computer skill levels and one child with an IEP, we are overwhelmed. We are working with 27 teachers and multiple resource providers. These teachers are working tirelessly to provide the best experiences they can for each of my children. That being said, my children have too much work and not enough support. The remote model of instruction lacks the physical interaction necessary for comprehensive understanding. My elementary children often understand the academic principles yet lack the computer skills necessary to “complete” the assignment. When they don’t understand the academic principles, due to the remote structure, it is very difficult to attain the extra help needed from the teacher. Also, the hours spent on the computer for “in-person” instruction combined with the time spent on the computer doing homework is detrimental to my children.
My older children express high levels of discouragement and helplessness at having lost almost all extracurricular opportunities. Our family alone has lost the opportunities to participate in multiple sports, music, theatre, dance and social clubs. These extracurricular activities allow our children to thrive in non academic settings as well as gain a sense of identity and belonging separate from their academic performance. Without these opportunities our children stand the risk of experiencing severe negative impact to their mental health. These are a few examples of how remote learning, despite being an admirable attempt to meet students needs lacks the long term sustainability needed for our children’s success.
Our children, our families and our community need to know there is hope in this time of uncertainty. I am confidant the LAPS school board will come together, see the opportunity to meet the needs of the majority of our school community while offering resources and options to those who are not yet comfortable to move forward. Please do not reverse the vote of moving forward to the hybrid model. Please do not make any decision that will make for a longer school year. Please continue to see that we as a community can come together to move forward with wisdom in our decisions and compassion for one another.
Thank you for your time, Megan Hanks
Sent from my iPhone
I am writing to you as a member of the Los Alamos community and mother of 5 students in the LAPS school district. My children attend LAHS, LAMS, and Barranca Mesa Elementry. As a family we are very much aware of the difficult situation we are in as a community. It goes without saying that our community and our families are struggling as we face the social, emotional and physical effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. I applaud and express my great appreciation to all in our community who are diligently working to help provide safety and social emotional resources to our families and community. Difficult decisions are being made almost daily in an effort to support the well being of the people of Los Alamos.
I recognize and appreciate the great effort that has been made by the LAPS school district, Dr. Steinhaus and the LAPS school board in these difficult times. As I listened to the most recent board meeting it was very evident that all parties within the LAPS system and the members of the community greatly desire to listen to one another and have an open mind to the needs of each person affected by the school boards decisions. I am grateful for and in support of the boards decision to move forward with the hybrid learning model.
The results of the district parent survey in which it was found that around 80% of parents are in favor of some return to in-person learning suggests it is in the best interest of the school board and district to continue ahead with that decision while recognizing there will need to be support and options given to those who are not in the majority. Making decisions for the whole of LAPS based on the needs and experience of the minority will have long lasting detrimental effects on our community.
I do not believe the remote learning model is sustainable for our families or community as a whole. Based on my experience with my 5 children ages 17, 15, 12, 11, 10, with varying levels of academic strengths and weaknesses, varying computer skill levels and one child with an IEP, we are overwhelmed. We are working with 27 teachers and multiple resource providers. These teachers are working tirelessly to provide the best experiences they can for each of my children. That being said, my children have too much work and not enough support. The remote model of instruction lacks the physical interaction necessary for comprehensive understanding. My elementary children often understand the academic principles yet lack the computer skills necessary to “complete” the assignment. When they don’t understand the academic principles, due to the remote structure, it is very difficult to attain the extra help needed from the teacher. Also, the hours spent on the computer for “in-person” instruction combined with the time spent on the computer doing homework is detrimental to my children.
My older children express high levels of discouragement and helplessness at having lost almost all extracurricular opportunities. Our family alone has lost the opportunities to participate in multiple sports, music, theatre, dance and social clubs. These extracurricular activities allow our children to thrive in non academic settings as well as gain a sense of identity and belonging separate from their academic performance. Without these opportunities our children stand the risk of experiencing severe negative impact to their mental health. These are a few examples of how remote learning, despite being an admirable attempt to meet students needs lacks the long term sustainability needed for our children’s success.
Our children, our families and our community need to know there is hope in this time of uncertainty. I am confidant the LAPS school board will come together, see the opportunity to meet the needs of the majority of our school community while offering resources and options to those who are not yet comfortable to move forward. Please do not reverse the vote of moving forward to the hybrid model. Please do not make any decision that will make for a longer school year. Please continue to see that we as a community can come together to move forward with wisdom in our decisions and compassion for one another.
Thank you for your time, Megan Hanks
Sent from my iPhone
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