Virtual class ‘putting people in a bind’ during NFL Draft in Kansas City, parents say

Kansas City Public Schools officials told parents they would look into helping with child care when classes go virtual during this week’s NFL Draft. But a district representative told The Star on Monday they’ve received “minimal feedback from families” so they won’t offer the child care.

Yet some parents are worried.

“I feel like they are making parents choose between their work life and their home life,” says Breanna Dean, a mother of four who has a child at KCPS’ Longfellow Elementary and two others at Hogan Preparatory Academy charter schools, which also have virtual classes Thursday and Friday. “If I wasn’t able to work from home those days, it would definitely be a stress.”

While Hogan and some other charter schools are switching to remote learning during the NFL Draft, others, such as De La Salle Education Center, will remain open for in-person classes.

In a letter to families this month, KCPS officials listed several logistical and safety concerns the NFL Draft presented. About 300,000 people are expected to attend the event Thursday through Saturday around Union Station, and several roads in the area will be closed. So officials were concerned about transporting students safely and in a timely manner on buses, as well as teachers and staff struggling to get to work or taking time off.

“We understand that this decision may present a hardship for some families, and we want to assure you that we did not make this decision lightly,” officials told families in an April 6 email.

Dean and her husband work for the IRS, whose offices are across from Union Station. She works from home most days anyway and doesn’t have to go in at all this week. But her husband, like many parents in the district, is required to work in person every day. She sympathizes with parents who may have to take time off from work, possibly without pay, to care for their children.

“Things are already so expensive with inflation so who can really afford to take off and lose money? It’s putting people in a bind. I am happy for the city and the revenue it is bringing, but accommodate your workers and parents,” she says.

Ashley Daniels, a mother of a 14-year-old eighth-grader at Lincoln College Preparatory Academy Middle School, knows that this would have been difficult if her daughter were younger.

“I understand the draft is a big event, but I didn’t understand initially how it would impact schools,” says Daniels. “I didn’t think it would cause such a disruption for people’s normal day-to-day lives and actually affect school for the kids.”

This is their first year in KCPS and they have few complaints, but she feels the district could have handled this move to virtual classes better. Daniels is a single mother juggling parenting, a full-time job and volunteer work.

“It is not a huge inconvenience for me and it is easier having a middle schooler, but remembering the days when she was younger, I would have to secure day care or change my work schedule. Plus my daughter learns better being in class,” she says.

Daniels said parents needed to be told of the change earlier.

“We understand that the initial announcement may have lacked clarity, and we apologize for any confusion this may have caused,” the district said in its April 6 email.

Daniels, a licensed clinical social worker, needs to request time off from work 60 days in advance, leaving little room to maneuver.

“It definitely can cause stress and issues for parents who may not have a network of family or friends that are trusted people you can leave your children with and fall back on,” says Daniels.

Both mothers agree, however, that the buses are a legitimate reason to switch to virtual classes this week. The buses are unreliable during typical weeks, they say, and they would not be confident depending on them amid road closures. KCPS, like other area school districts, faces a shortage of bus drivers.

“We are already dealing with buses showing up extremely late or never showing up at all,” says Dean. “At this scale, it could be a good thing due to the volume of it all because who knows how long it would take these buses?”