The Beverly Hills Unified School District will offer two options for instruction during the upcoming school year that comply with public health guidelines. (photo by Jose Herrera)

On Aug. 4, the Beverly Hills Unified School District Board of Education unanimously approved an agreement with the Beverly Hills Education Association on expectations for the upcoming school year.

The BHEA Representative Council also unanimously approved the memorandum of understanding, a type of agreement between two or more parties without a formal contract, on Aug. 3.

“The BHEA bargaining team has worked in a partnership with the district and board of education to fine-tune and reach an agreement detailing exactly what the plan is so that we can start the school year with clear expectations for everyone,” BHUSD Superintendent Michael Bregy wrote in a statement announcing the MOU.

After many weeks of negotiating, the BHUSD and BHEA reached an MOU regarding the return to school in the fall, according to a press release from BHUSD. The MOU focuses on the changes caused by COVID-19 from physical learning to distance education, but it is the intent of the district and association to return to a traditional educational program as soon as is feasible consistent with state and local health orders, Bregy wrote in a statement.

On July 21, the board of education confirmed two options – Independent Learning Center, a full semester or year of online learning, and Live @ BHUSD, a hybrid model that would have students begin instruction online and eventually transition back to in-person instruction under state and local health directives – from which students and their parents will choose.

Although the teaching models were selected, the details for how teachers would work and where were not agreed upon until the MOU.

The district will allow teachers to work in district-assigned locations such as classrooms or from member-determined remote locations such as a home. Once the district is allowed to transition back to traditional teaching, it will provide a minimum of 10-days notice to prepare.

It is anticipated that the return to a traditional program may occur in phases and may include remote and hybrid instructional and support models, Bregy wrote in a statement.

The district and the association also agreed to start the school year on Aug. 18 rather than Aug. 17. To make up for this day of instruction, Jan. 27 will change from a professional development day to an instructional day.

Ethan Smith, president of BHEA, said the change to the start date would significantly impact educators. The change from traditional learning to distance learning was more of a “smacking on a wall” rather than a learning curve, he added.

The extra day will help teachers refresh what they have learned in training and workshops to prepare for distance learning all through summer and in the past spring, he said.

Smith also mentioned educators were really nervous about returning to campus.

“Teachers are like any other group of people,” Smith said. “Some are dealing with health issues, some are not, some are pregnant and others have families to worry about.”

The BHEA was pleased that the agreement provides options for teachers to choose where they want to teach, he added.

For teachers that decide to go back to district-approved locations, the district will clean and sanitize all the necessary facilities and equipment to remain in full compliance with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health orders.

Additionally, Live @ BHUSD will mimic what occurs in a physical classroom as closely as possible connecting in visual and auditory ways to provide students instruction, encouragement and feedback.

Students will have classes mimicking their regular class schedules, and will have meetings with their teachers through online tools such as Zoom, Google Classrooms, Google meets and other methods.

BHUSD will have staff ready to assist both teachers and students with any technological problems and provide tutors and set meetings with teachers as supplementary support, according to the MOU.

Isabel Hacker, board of education president, reiterated the importance of unity in the upcoming school year during a special board meeting on Aug. 4.

“On behalf of the board of education, I offer our thanks to BHUSD Superintendent Dr. Bregy, the cabinet, the BHEA bargaining team and BHEA members for such exhaustive work together on this educationally robust agreement,” Hacker said. “As we enter the first school year in our history from a distance learning model due to COVID-19, we recognize that we must preemptively mitigate obstructive impacts to ensure the best possible education is made available to our students. I am pleased to see an outcome that so closely mirrors the physical classroom which positively supports the entire district under very trying times. I know that we are ready for this challenge.”

For information, visit bhusd.org/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=1786523&type=d&pREC_ID=1989322.