Childcare is scarce in a pandemic. O’Fallon High School has a program to help its staff
Kimberly Coley just started working for O’Fallon Township High School as the special services coordinator at the Millburn campus. Adjusting to a new job isn’t always easy, but keeping kids home because of a pandemic brings unique, new challenges.
On at least one front, Coley is getting help from her new district.
While local schools are remote learning, O’Fallon Township High School is letting any staff members bring their children in kindergarten through eighth grade to campus for free “alternate e-care.” Paraprofessionals help support them while they do their own e-learning, allowing their parents to focus on teaching their students.
Tiffany Niedringhaus said over the summer, school administrators began to realize that remote learning wasn’t just a possibility for the fall, it was a likelihood.
“Somewhere in the middle of the summer, my whole thought process slipped from ‘what if we have to do this?’ to ‘we’re doing this,’ “ Niedringhaus said.
Part of transitioning to remote learning is figuring out where teachers and staff members need support. Niedringhaus said that during a time of transition, it was important to “support the staff so they can support the kids.”
To start, there is one teacher’s aid spearheading the program at each campus, but Niedringhaus said they will add staff as necessary. In addition to working on their school assignments, there are art materials and board games that are cleaned and sanitized each day. Masks and social distancing are also required of the students.
Ciara Henderson is the paraprofessional heading up the program at the Smiley Campus; her sister, Michaela, is leading at the Millburn Campus.
Last year, Ciara Henderson was working in her first year as a special education paraprofessional. Thanks to her experience as a summer camp counselor at the Y, she said the transition from paraprofessional to supporting younger students was smoother than she expected.
“The first day, [the kids] were a little skeptical. I think they thought we were babysitters,” Henderson said. “Their parents didn’t really know what we were going to be doing either.”
The Henderson’s help kids log into their classes and keep an eye on them while they do their work, but they also take them outside and do art projects.
There are few childcare options in a pandemic
When schools were closed in the spring and students sent home, many parents — including educators — were forced to join them, whether from layoffs, furloughs or instructions to work from home.
In St. Clair County, nearly all K-12 students started the year remotely, but teachers, administrators and other staff members are returning to their classrooms and offices.
Under normal circumstances, most all-day childcare or daycare is limited to students who aren’t old enough to attend school. For elementary students, most childcare programs are limited to before or after school.
In 2018, there were 1,597,250 children in Illinois between the ages of 5 and 14, including 1,103,409 ages 5–11, according to Kids Count data.
Given the changing circumstances, some groups are working to provide childcare and remote learning support for older children during normal school day hours, but it can be costly, especially for families who hadn’t been expecting to pay for childcare during the school year.
Sylvan Learning in O’Fallon has created a school support program for school-aged children remote learning during regular school hours. It starts at $199 a month. The O’Fallon YMCA’s Y Enrichment Program to support virtual learning for students costs $200 a week for members, and financial assistance is available.
Supporting students
Two of Coley’s children, a third-grader and a seventh-grader, are in the program. She also has two students who attend the high school.
“With the way online instruction is set up, I knew the two older ones would not be able to support the two younger ones,” Coley said.
Coley said that, originally, the administration was talking about letting staff bring their children into their classrooms while they taught, but the concern was that it would be a distraction for the teachers.
“I commend the leadership team here at OTHS for having that innovative thinking,” Coley said. “I’m very new here as a staff member and administrator myself. … It has been amazing.”
This story was originally published September 16, 2020 at 7:00 AM.
