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Board postpones plan for synchronous inclement‑weather instruction after equity and cost concerns
Summary
After administrators outlined equity, special-education and technology barriers and a roughly $200,000 recurring cost for hotspot contracts, the board voted to postpone indefinitely the proposed synchronous instruction plan for inclement-weather days.
The Harford County Board of Education voted on Sept. 22 to postpone indefinitely a district proposal to use synchronous virtual instruction for some inclement-weather days, citing unresolved issues with connectivity, accessibility for young learners and special-education students, and significant recurring costs.
Chief of Staff Katie Ridgeway reviewed the district’s work on a synchronous-instruction plan that respondents requested to reduce the number of make-up days and finish the school year sooner. Ridgeway said state rules limit use of asynchronous instruction for certain student groups and that the district could not find a viable, low-cost alternative to providing hotspots or other connectivity options to reach all students.
During board discussion members raised the expected expense of maintaining hotspots under an annual contract and concerns about whether phone-based approaches would support four hours of instruction. A figure of about $200,000 for hotspot contracts and related recurring costs was cited during the discussion. Board members also pointed to implementation burdens for central staff, the need for professional development and concerns about equity for multilingual learners and special-education students.
After discussion a motion to postpone the synchronous-learning plan indefinitely passed by voice vote; several board members said they still support pursuing digital-equity solutions through grants or county partnerships but were not ready to proceed this year. The vote means the district is unlikely to implement synchronous-inclement-weather days for the current school year unless the board reintroduces the item.
