HCDE Reopening Task Force encouraged by survey response

HAMILTON COUNTY, Tenn. (WDEF) — The Hamilton County Schools Reopening Task Force is confident school will reopen August 12. What that will look like is still unclear.

“What we wanted to do is make sure the community had a voice, make sure they were engaged,” task force co-chair Col. Bill Brooks said.

More than 25,000 parents, students and staff responded to the Hamilton County Schools most recent survey on reopening schools. Fifty-six percent of students and 41 percent of parents are in favor of returning to school in person come the fall. Those numbers are encouraging for the leaders of the task force.

“I think it shows some confidence,” Col. Brooks said.

“I think there’s a lot of interest in returning to normal,” task force co-chair Keith Fogleman said.

Thirty-two percent of parents say they don’t know if they would send their children back to school. However, Fogleman believes those numbers could change with more planning.

“What our goal will be is to start to convince the 32 percent that we’ve got a good plan and they can feel comfortable returning their children to our schools,” Fogleman said.

Nevertheless, Brooks said he’s confident school will be back in session and in the building August 12.

“We plan on being back in the school August 12. Now, what is that going to look like? We’ll see,” Brooks said. “But we’re planning for being back in the building. We’re planning for parents who don’t want to send their kids back to school.”

The task force will release the next step of their reopening plan to the school board July 2. Parents can also expect another survey to be sent in the next few weeks.