Volusia County teachers fear reopening as district votes to push back school start date to Aug. 31

VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. - On Tuesday, Volusia County leaders voted to push back the reopening of schools until Aug. 31.

The school board met to vote on a back-to-school plan as parents and teachers raised concerns about sending their children back to the classroom.

Amy Hawkins has been an educator for 10 years, currently teaching science and math at Forest Lake Elementary School in Deltona. She calls the classroom her home.

“I’ve spent more time in my classroom in the past 10 years than I have in my home, and I’ve spent more time with my students than I have with my own children,” she said.

The mother of two said she is immunocompromised, putting her in the high-risk category. She said doctors deliver nerve-wracking news when the pandemic started.

RELATED: Voluntary Prekindergarten Education Program suspended at Volusia elementary over COVID-19 concerns

“If I get COVID, I’ll probably die,” she said. “In the past two weeks, I’ve written my will. I’ve never done that before.”

She said she doesn’t plan to send her own kids back to the classroom, but for her teaching is her livelihood.

“I want to teach in my classroom with my students. I just don’t want to die doing it,” she said.

RELATED: Volusia County considers shifting school start time

On Tuesday, the school board will layout a 66-page plan it says focuses on safety and the well-being of all involved.

Hawkins said she hopes the decision-makers think things through thoroughly.

“We should do what’s right for our kids, and what’s right for our kids is sending them into schools that are clean, that are safe and that are adequately supplied,” she said.

She understands school board members in Volusia County and other school districts are in a tough spot.

“There are no good answers and I feel for the people making these decisions,” she said. 

See Volusia County's school reopening plan