East Houston News

Barbers Hill Independent School District (ISD) Superintendent Greg Poole has exchanged strong words with the Chambers County Health Authority, Dr. W. Clay Brown, over plans for reopening classrooms for the school year.

The existing plan for the school year gives parents the option to choose to educate their children online or in-person, according to KPRC 2. The station reported that almost every parent it spoke with favored in-person schooling.

However, the Chambers County Health Department posted a letter prior to the start of school that questioned the plans of local school districts for in-person classes, even recommending they be delayed into September, KPRC 2 reported. The earliest that the health department recommended schools permit in-person instruction is Tuesday, Sept. 8.

Supt. Greg Poole | https://www.bhisd.net/

Additionally, the health department used the letter as an opportunity to inform the public that it had “urged” school districts against their plans to have in-person instruction, KPRC 2 reported.

In response, Poole wrote a letter of his own, accusing Brown, as the authority behind the health department’s recommendation, of basing his recommendations on hunches, according to KPRC 2. Poole also criticized the lack of data cited to support Brown’s recommendations.

Ultimately, Poole concluded that the health department's letter amounts to “fear-mongering,” KPRC 2 reported. Poole seems unlikely to draw much criticism from parents for his stance.

Kendra Eyth, one of the Barbers Hill ISD parents KPRC 2 spoke to, said that in-person instruction provides more discipline and structure for the students.

"I feel like they get more out of it,” Eyth told KPRC 2. “At home, it's difficult."

Another Barbers Hill ISD parent, David Lothridge, said he feels the classroom environment is more conducive to learning compared to children having to receive instruction over a computer.