this is "nightline." tonight, back to school strategies. >> good morning! >> weighing the risks and rewards of filling classrooms during a pandemic. but, is it safe yet? from the high school senior chasing her dreams. >> i want to go back to school, even though we're in the middle of a pandemic. >> to the mom taking no chances. >> we have asked teachers to take bullets for our children. now we asking them to potentially contract a deadly virus. >> the debate dividing a nation. >> don't play politics with our kids. >> plus, 49 days in the grip of coronavirus. >> i want y'all to take this virus very seriously, because it's not a joke. >> three weeks on a ventilator. >> this stuff is real.

>> one young man's long road back. >> "nightline" starts right now with juju chang. good evening, thanks for joining us. tonight, the covid-19 death toll in the u.s. surpassing 150,000 people, with the government pointing to 98 hotspots emerging in more than half the country. this as some schools welcome students back to classrooms, a decision worrying parents and teachers alike, trying to balance the risks against the educational rewards the. >> remember to keep moving as one target at a time. eyes are facing forward. >> meagan carrigan is not letting the pandemic keep her out of the classroom. >> being able to see the growth the students make when they first start with us to the end of the year is just priceless. >> kerrigan knows the risks she's taking each time she comes to work. she's a cancer survivor and diabetic.

in the back of your mind, to you feel like you're taking a risk every time you walk into the classroom? >> honestly, yes. we take risks in everything we do each day, but given the circumstances that i've already gone through, i feel like i need to do the best that i can to live my life to the fullest. and as long as i know that i am taking all the precautions that i need to take then i'm going to be okay. >> n. >> kerrigan has been teaching for 15 years at bennett elementary school near jacksonville, florida. what are kids missing out on if they're staying at home during the pandemic? >> it's different school to school. but there are those kids who come to school as their safe place. we provide meals for them. not only the academics which are extremely important, but it is the social support that they get here. >> the school, like the rest of our society, has been altered by covid-19. hand sanitizer, more hand

washing, seating charts, attempting to space out desks. some students in masks, others not. rules vary from district to district. face coverings here are not mandatory for kindergarteners. >> i have been around kindergarteners and little kids and they can't keep their hands off each other, how are you planning to keep them apart? >> no system is perfect, but to the best of our ability we have put in different procedures to keep that from happening. will they sometimes bump into each other? absolutely. will we have to give them friendly reminders to get them to social distance, absolutely. >> this is what the future of schools could look like across america, but how soon kids and teachers return to the classroom and whether they should at all during the midst of the pandemic is turning schools into the next battle ground. >> no dead children! >> so far, five states have ordered schools to start

in-person classes this fall. a few school districts like those in san diego and virtual only until november at the earliest. earlier this month, the president tweeted threatening to cut funding if schools don't reopen by fall. >> every district should be actively making preparations to open. >> there's not a national superintendent, nor should there be. therefore, there's not a national plan for reopening. >> governors determined to get their states back to normal. >> if fast food and walmart and home depot, i do all that, i'm not looking down on it. if all that is essential, then educating our kids is absolutely essential. >> tonight we go inside the debate and inside the classroom, talking to parents, students and teachers grappling with what's best. >> we've asked teachers to take bullets for our children. now we're asking them to potentially contract a deadly virus. >> i want to go back to school, even though we're in the middle

of a pandemic, because it is my senior year. >> i absolutely have no choice but to send them to school. because i work 45 hours a week. >> don't play orid w schools have been ordered topen up in august for in-person learning, even though today florida recorded its deadliest day during the pandemic. pensacola parents keith and marsha reeves don't think school should be open. >> i would have been okay with either remote learning or virtual learning. that is the safest alternative for all involved. >> they're parents to 17-year-old akeilah. >> over here we have my desk where i have my laptop and my books and things of that for school. >> they've struggled over whether to send their daughter back to class. >> well, the options for akeilah to learn are of course the traditional route. and of course virtual.

>> as a family, we talked about it. we discussed the pros, the cons. and we ultimately allowed akeilah to make that decision for her. >> but akeilah, a rising senior, says remote learning held her back. >> i realized that i'm not the type of person who can sit in front of a computer screen for hours on end and just learn through that osmosis style of learning. it's not for me. >> she's decided to return to the cralassroom. >> i've been looking forward to my senior year all my life it feels like. i am trying to get into college, so i am focussing on bettering my a.c.t. scores and s.a.t. scores. i personally think spellman being an all-girls school is amazing. >> her dream, spellman. >> i want to study political

science. condoleezza rice is someone i admire and look up to. >> we still have lots and lots of concerns about it. we trust akeilah to be able to follow social distancing and wearing a mask and all those things. >> but samantha taylor won't be sending her kids back to school. >> i'm going to turn this into a classroom. so you'll see desks. we want to make sure that this room is where they do school and they don't do school anywhere else. >> the taylors live in a suburb of orlando. her high school aged son who has special needs will be returning to a private program. >> i personally feel like it's a privilege to be able to keep them home, and we're in the middle of a global pandemic. my goal for them is happiness and safety and mental health and security and stability. the academics will come, but it is not my first priority. >> she hopes her decision will create more space in school for

children who can't stay home. >> if i can do my part by keeping my kids here, it's less bodies in the building for the teachers and families who have to send their kids. >> for millions of teachers, as opening day draws closer, so do the fears. >> i'm going to take my blood pressure medicine. >> returning to the classroom could cost him his life. >> high blood pressure and covid puts me at a higher risk, especially at the school where exposure is more. >> his 63-year-old sister, a music teacher, has been battling covid-19 for 18 days on a ventilator. he says he has not been given the option to teach virtually. >> i guess we'll make a decision whether i'd have to tender a resignation or find something else for me, but i'm pretty sure that would mean i'd have to tender a resume. >> the nation's largest teachers union is authorizing its members to strike if their schools don't reopen safely.

and just last week, florida's teacher's union filed a lawsuit against state officials, calling the in-person reopening mandates reckless. >> i want schools to reopen, but we need to be realistic about in what fashion is the safest way for schools to reopen? >> carol cleaver is vice president of the local teachers union in pensacola. she's on the state's task force helping plan a safe reopening for schools. >> i presented that plan to the governor and commissioner of education early in june. >> advice she says state leaders ignored. frustrated, cleaver organized a drive-by parade at her school to demand at the very least a mask mandates. >> all types of people come out, teachers, bus drivers were there. we're concerned about the rising numbers and wanted to call attention to maybe an effort to relook at our plan. >> her district relented,

delaying the reopening day to august 24, adding that students and staff are expected to wear a mask when they can't socially distance. >> i certainly have elderly people in my family that i'm concerned about. i'm really terrified that i might bring something home to them. i'm terrified that one of my students might bring something back to their household. >> let's look up on the board. >> back in her kindergarten classroom, megan kerrigan remains calm amidst the turmoil. >> what can i do for you, sir? >> i've seen teachers protesting in different parts of the country, saying that reopening is too soon, too much too soon. what would you say to them? >> i would respectfully say to you, each their own, to be honest. you a teacher, as a person, as a parent, you need to do what's best for you and your family. and if you do not feel it's a place you need to be at that point, you need to stand true to what you feel. for me, personally, being in the

classroom is where i want to be and where i feel safe going. >> it's a debate that will no doubt continue as back to school season draws closer. coming up, the 22-year-old fighting for his life. what he wants young people to know about the coronavirus. original crown molding, walk in closets... we do have a ratt problem. ♪ round and round! ♪ with love we'll find a way, just give it time. ♪ at least geico makes bundling our home and car insurance easy. it does help us save. ♪ round and round! ♪ with love we'll find a way, just give it time. ♪ ♪ round and round! ♪ what comes around, goes around. ♪ for bundling made easy, go to geico.com

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across america, young people are falling ill to the coronavirus now more than ever, a scary reality one young man thought he would never survive. and yet surviving is just the beginning. here's abc's victor oquendo. >> reporter: this is the moment that michael mullinex and his family feared would never happen, the moment he could finally leave the hospital. michael spent 49 grueling days in a georgia hospital, battling covid-19 after all eight of his family members contracted the virus. michael's mother connie in anguish during this time. >> my youngest son marshall junior got it for three days and

he was fine after that. me and my husband and my son got the worst case. but michael had it the worst than we did. >> this is what michael looks like right now. >> reporter: for three weeks, the 22-year-old was placed on a ventilator, fighting for his life. i know it's tough, but watching michael go through that as a mother, what's it like? >> you never thought you would see your son with all the tubes. i have a picture of him and his brother that i would put under my pillow, and i didn't want to close it until he got home. >> reporter: the former high school football player had no preexisting conditions, adding to the mystery why the virus seems to hit some harder than others. >> he does not have any medical issues. we stayed up on top of his health when he was going into middle school, high school and in elementary school. there's nothing really that's wrong with michael whatsoever. very healthy. >> reporter: michael's voice is still hoarse from the breathing

tubes that kept him alive. >> this stuff is real. >> reporter: his family says he faces up to six months of expensive physical therapy ahead to rebuild muscle strength and improve blood circulation, the fallout from being been bedridden for weeks. >> it's going to take a while for him to heal and be back to normal. he's already lost a lot of muscle mass in his left leg. it's re weak. he walks right now with a walker, but michael has a long road of recovery for him. >> reporter: but his family knows they're the lucky ones. michael was able to come home. they hope his story can warn others that no one is immune from this virus, not even the young. >> this is not a game. this is serious. it's not fake. it's not a common cold, it's not the flu. take it seriously, people. put on a mask, wash your hands. that's what michael's message would be. >> our thanks to victor. earlier, i spoke with abc news

chief medical correspondent, dr. jen ashton. as we just saw young patients like michael can end up on a walker for weeks, his vocal chords are still damaged. in many ways, leaving the hospital is just the beginning of a long-term comeback. >> it definitely can be. what you're talking about is something any intensive care person knows very well. it even has a name. the post icu syndrome, and that is a marked, debilitation, muscle wasting. literally almost every system can be involved. and people have to remember, just because you're discharged from the hospital, especially from the icu, the road to recovery can literally be day by day, and it can take months. i always encourage people you have to be patient with yourself. just because you spent ten days in an icu doesn't mean in ten days you'll be back to baseline.

it can take a lot longer than that. >> and jen, earlier today we watched you speak one on one with dr. anthony fauci on a wide range of issues. but one issue many of us are still wondering about is hydroxychloroquine. it's back in the news after a retweet by president trump. a growing number of experts are saying it's not even effective against covid. can you help us clear up some of these misconceptions? >> i can give context. it's important we're in the setting of a medical and public health crisis and emergency. as such, you know this, i say it all the time. doctors and scientists should stay in their lane and politicians should stay in theirs. we're talking about a drug here, and every drug has risks and benefits. the fda officially has not delineated any benefits to hydroxychloroquine in treating covid-19, but they always leave open the door for doctors to

prescribe any medication in an off-label setting if that doctor feels that the benefits outweigh the risks. i think when you talk about hydroxychloroquine or any drug, it's important to remember in science, in medicine, we're always reassessing, reanalyzing, studying drugs and how they work in different patient populations in different settings, so i know it's frustrating for people, but when you hear something one day, data may produce a different outcome down the road, and we just have to keep an open mind to that. >> and this is why we like to listen to you and dr. fauci, thanks, dr. jen, as always. >> thanks, juju. up next, how this u.s. navy pilot is inspiring others to soar to new heights pepto® diarrhea is proven effective to treat symptoms, and it also targets the cause of diarrhea. the 3 times concentrated liquid formula coats and kills bacteria to relieve diarrhea.

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finally tonight, aiming for the stars. set to make history. lieutenant madeline sweegle on friday will earn her wings, becoming the first black female tactical jet pilot for the u.s. navy. >> i think that representation

is important. because we are a very diverse nation. so i would like everyone to believe that they can achieve whatever they want to do. >> sweegle dreaming of being a pilot since she was a child. and now flying higher than ever. a true trail blazer. and that's "nightline" for tonight. we'll see you right back here tomorrow at the same time. thanks for staying up with us, goodnight, america. >> dicky: from hollywood, it as "jimmy kimmel live," with guest host, sean hayes. tonight, jason bateman, and our health care hero of the week. and now, sean hayes. >> person, woman, man, camera, tv, person, woman, man, camera, tv -- oh sorry, just doing my

warm up exercises. hi, i'm sean hayes live and welcome to "jimmy kimmel." i'm your guest host for the evening, but i'm probably best known as "the character from 'will & grace' that even your homophobic grandma loved." now i know i'm just your substitute for the night, but i expect you to behave just like you would if your regular host were here. so, turn down the volume and start humpin'. i'm so excited to be doing this. i'll never forget when jimmy called my agent about this gig. my agent said "there's no way in hell adam driver will do this, but i also represent sean hayes." and i want to take a second to say hi to my husband who's back at home supporting me right now. hi, scotty, i love you. and if you even think about touching the horse puzzle without me, i'll suffocate you in your sleep. now that we're all having fun, i'm going to tell you something that will ruin your month. it turns out that coronavirus might be spread through air