Lee County parents debate whether or not to send their kids back to school this fall

School starts in less than a month in Lee County, but for parents, the choice becomes tough: Do you send your kid back, or do you sacrifice your job and keep them at home to do distance learning?

One parent, Bridget Wooten, is feeling that struggle.

“I definitely do have concerns as far as safety goes. We obviously do still have the virus,” she said.

The mom of three says she can’t do another day of online learning.

“I am ready for my children to return to school,” Wooten said. “Me and my fiancé are both full-time workers and we have been working through the whole pandemic, so trying to schedule working with our kids day-to-day — it’s been a struggle.”

She also can’t afford to lose out on that second income.

“It’s definitely a struggle when you have two working parents for sure,” she said.

Candice Snyder can relate. Fortunately, she has more flexibility with her job.

“I’m working shorter hours, so I’m only gone five hours a day, four days a week,” she said.

On the other hand, Jodi Johnson worries about what her children will lose out on if they don’t return to school next month.

“I feel that my children don’t get the quality of education that they had in the past,” she said. “The percentage for the children from having death from COVID is 0.002%. That’s very low.”

Still, these moms say they’re not yet ready for their kids to return to crowded hallways, classrooms and cafeterias.

There’s one thing they all agree on: “I really would love to see our children get back to school, get back to a normal routine, get back to socializing,” said Wooten.

The parents we spoke with also say their biggest concern is what schools will do if a student does get the virus. Most Southwest Florida students return to school in early to mid-August.