Preston — Preston schools will return to five-day in-person learning starting Monday after parents successfully petitioned the Board of Education on Monday.

The Board of Education voted 4-3 to approve the change following the lengthy public comment period and discussion Monday night.

Parent Courtney Ennis submitted a petition with 129 names asking the school system to eliminate remote learning on Wednesdays. Ennis said the district’s plan to return to full in-person school after April vacation is “too late.” She called the Wednesday remote learning days, adopted due to the coronavirus pandemic, "disruptive and confusing" to children.

“Surrounding towns including Norwich have moved to a five day a week schedule," Ennis wrote in an email to the board. "There is no reason Preston cannot accomplish this if they make the students the priority.”

Parents who addressed the board Monday argued that since Preston already has four-day in-person school, adding one day would not be a big leap.

Parent Cara Sawyer said she was very disappointed the school board has not discussed returning to full-time in-person learning sooner. She said districts elsewhere in the state that were hit much harder by COVID-19 have returned to full in-person school.

“They’re happier back at school," she said. "It’s safer back at school. They need to be back at school.”

Board members Cynthia Luty, Tom Turner, Dan Harris and George Carver voted in favor of starting five-day in-person learning next week, while Chairman Sean Nugent and members Charles Raymond and Deborah Grabarek voted against the immediate change.

“I’m tired of waiting,” Turner said. “My kids are tired of waiting. All the kids I know are tired of waiting. We’ve talked about it. The goalposts keep moving. I’m tired of that, and I’m ready to go yesterday.”

The board members who voted against returning to school five days next week wanted to give Superintendent Roy Seitsinger more time to rework Wednesday schedules, for staff to be vaccinated against COVID-19 and for staff with children to secure child care.

“I would want all staff that wants to be vaccinated, let them be vaccinated before we go back a full five days,” Raymond said.

Nugent expressed disappointment that the state did not prioritize educators earlier in the vaccine rollout. About half of Preston’s 102 school staff members have received at least their first shots, Seitsinger said, "a positive trend."

The school district has used remote learning Wednesdays for professional development, and middle school parent-teacher conferences scheduled for March 17 will have to be rescheduled, Seitsinger said. Remote Wednesdays also allow "spacing" to minimize contact tracing quarantines if someone in the school system contracts COVID-19 or is exposed, he said.

Seitsinger said about 30 students have opted for full remote learning throughout the year, down from a high of 49 students earlier in the school year. In addition, about 20 students are being home-schooled and are no longer part of the school population. Staffing has become an issue at times, with COVID-19 cases, exposure and contact tracing quarantines at times forcing remote learning days.

“I 100% agree with all the comments that were made today, with the parents’ comments and the signatures going around,” board member Luty said. “... I feel the frustration of all the parents. I see it with my grandchildren. I can’t justify any of those points that were made to take one more day away from these kids.”

On Tuesday, Seitsinger said middle school staff were working to reschedule the March 17 parent-teacher conferences, and he also plans to reschedule the March 24 professional development day. Staff also are reassigning various student interventions and lunch waves for Wednesdays.

c.bessette@theday.com