Coronavirus highlights inequities among Western Pa. school districts

In the McKeesport Area School District, Superintendent Mark Holtzman estimates more than a thousand families either don’t have reliable internet access or the necessary technological devices to complete online schoolwork.

Lessons are being made available via paper handouts, social media and the district website, he said. Completing material is strongly encouraged — but not required.

“There’s no simple way to make the work mandatory for all children with access issues,” Holtzman said. “We wish we had more resources, but at this point, we’re doing the best that we can.”

When it comes to teaching students during Pennsylvania’s stay-at-home order, some districts throughout the region are more prepared than others. The state’s transition to distance learning has exposed vast inequities among school districts when it comes to funding and available resources — inequities that existed long before the covid-19 pandemic, district leaders say.

“Many of the other school districts in Allegheny County are recognizing the equity issue is a huge one,” Holtzman said.

Gov. Tom Wolf announced Thursday schools would remain closed for the remainder of the 2019-20 academic year.

At Allegheny Valley School District, serving Springdale, Cheswick and Harmar, the potential for distance learning is met with more optimism.

“School closures have in a sense liberated teachers from schedules in a way that has allowed us to completely change our outlook on what learning and education can potentially be,” Superintendent Pat Graczyk said.

All students in grades 7 through 12 were provided laptops or tablets. Students in grades 4 through 6 were given iPads.

Younger grades are using printed handouts but also are using an app called Seesaw to connect with teachers digitally. There are a “handful” of families that don’t have internet connection, Graczyk said, but the district is working to provide wherever possible.

Graczyk acknowledged his district is at somewhat of an advantage: They have the resources and staff to be proactive. The modest size of the district allows for greater connectivity, he said, and better communication means a better chance of meeting every student’s individual needs.

A digital divide

There is a stark digital divide separating Allegheny County’s school districts, and even the individual neighborhoods within them, said Anthony Hamlet, superintendent of Pittsburgh Public Schools.

“It brings to light some of the inequities that have existed already within our school district,” Hamlet said. “We’ve been talking about the digital divide in our district for years now, but what have we really done about it?”

Access to devices and internet has been the district’s main challenge, Hamlet said. Pittsburgh Public Schools issued a survey for families early in the school closures, identifying communities by ZIP code in need of internet or devices.

As the district prepares to begin distance learning April 16, Hamlet said they have partnered with the Pittsburgh Technology Council, Neighborhood Allies and other philanthropic partners to put in an initial order of about 7,000 computers for students in need.

“We have online content, and we can deliver online instruction,” said Hamlet. “But the problem is that not all of our children have technology and internet access.”

Seeking needed resources

Other districts in Allegheny County have likewise resorted to fundraisers and donations to make up for a lack of resources. The Woodland Hills School District raised money to buy Chromebooks for district students.

In Westmoreland County, Greater Latrobe Superintendent Georgia Teppert says the district has distributed hundreds of Chromebooks and more than 40 portable broadband devices to make sure students are able to connect from their homes for distance learning during the school closure.

In some cases, she said, students may have needed to supplement the devices already in their homes because of multiple family members needing to work online.

Hempfield Area students in grades 6 through 12 have been using district-issued Chromebooks throughout the year, Superintendent Tammy Wolicki said.

“Our teachers and students have been using Google Classroom for instructional purposes, which allows for a smoother transition to virtual learning for secondary students,” she said.

Elementary students are provided Chromebooks if they don’t have a sibling who was issued one through the secondary program. Personal devices also can be used, but the district plans to issue additional computers to families with multiple students next week, after making sure every home has at least one device.

“While we are only at the start of week two with virtual learning, we are off to a good start because of the patience, flexibility and understanding of the parents, students and teachers,” Wolicki said.

Budgetary burdens

Most school districts rely on their local tax base for the majority of budgetary needs — as a result, districts located in wealthier municipalities often have greater resources to address the pandemic.

“We don’t have a local tax base as large as some of the others in surrounding communities,” Holtzman said, adding that McKeesport’s business industry is “minimal” and the district must cater to increased pension costs and large debt service payments.

“We really rely on state and federal funding,” which has been “flat,” he said.

Graczyk is hopeful the pandemic, despite the calamity it has brought to the education system, will perhaps inspire change on the county level.

“It’s a huge burden to a school district,” he said. “That would be such a powerful move for our county in terms of trying to close some of those equity gaps.”

State’s efforts to help

In a telephone news conference, Pennsylvania Secretary of Education Pedro Rivera reiterated the availability of new equity grants totaling $5 million.

The goal of providing the grants, Rivera said, is to close the achievement gap between districts with unequal resources, providing for those who do not have internet connectivity or technology devices for all students. Grant money can be used to produce print material, current and future broadband access and other services, Rivera said.

Rivera said the department is providing a free online platform for districts to use to connect with students, available through their intermediate units, and is partnering with entities like PBS to broadcast lessons for all age groups on TV.

Holtzman said the equity grants amount to a lot less than he had anticipated and likely won’t be very helpful for buying devices for children in a district as large as McKeesport Area.

“This is not an issue that will just go away,” he said. “We need to be as better prepared as we possibly can.”

The district, he said, is always looking for ways to address the budget shortfalls and the need for new technology. It’s challenging, at the moment, to reach out to corporate sponsors or hold a fundraiser, when much of the country’s commercial industry has closed for the foreseeable future. Holtzman said he is hopeful neighboring districts can work together and share resources wherever possible.

“Advocating for children, for the most vulnerable learners in this situation, is really, really important,” he said. “They’re the ones that are going to have to go back to school and pick up where they left off.”