Parents with children in Edmonton Catholic Schools say they were surprised and frustrated the division will prevent students from toggling between online and in-person classes for the rest of the school year.

It's a major shift from the school division's initial plan, which would have given students and their families a chance to toggle between in-person and online lessons at four points during the school year.

Sandy Mitchell's phone began buzzing with texts and Facebook messages Monday morning as parents read letters telling them they'd have to lock in their selection by October 15.

"The idea of having to make that choice in less than two weeks, it just seems really far fetched. And unfair," said Mitchell, who has twin daughters in Grade 6 at St. Leo Catholic School.

Mitchell's daughters, Eva and Sydney, opted to learn online from home this September — but only because they knew they could jump back into the classroom at three points later during the year.

Chair of the St. Leo school council, Mitchell says she never saw the change coming. Now, her family will likely sit down to scribble a pro-con list to help them decide which way to go.

Edmonton Catholic's deputy superintendent Tim Cusack said on Monday administrators were spending an enormous amount of time arranging classes, and the situation was unsustainable. Online students also could have had four different teachers in one course throughout the year — a situation Cusack said is not in students' best interests.

"We didn't take this decision lightly. We realize what we're asking families to do. But ultimately, this is sourced in making the most stable decision that we can do in terms of supporting the learning moving forward."

Cusack said the division was overwhelmed with how many students chose online learning, given they had prepared to run the bulk of classes in person. Of the division's 43,373 students, 11579, or 27 per cent, are learning online.

Leaders hired 200 additional teachers, including 100 to run online classes and 100 supply teachers to fill in for sick or isolated staff.

The move will cost Edmonton Catholic $19 million, consuming all of the $15.6 million in emergency federal funding the school board received, he said.

The division is also facing a shortage of qualified Catholic teachers, especially in specialized programs, because other school jurisdictions across Alberta are all hiring more teachers.

When asked if the division would consider hiring more non-Catholic teachers to help meet the demand, Cusack said human resources leaders are looking at all options.

Families now have one last chance to choose between in-person and online classes for the remainder of the school year.

Gemma Dunn has two sons enrolled in Grades 7 and 9 at Father Michael Troy Catholic School. Her older son, 13, is struggling with the mask-wearing and physical distancing, she said. It was easier to try a return to in-person classes in September knowing there was an escape route in November, she said.

She said the school board has failed to consult parents or discuss the decision publicly before Monday's announcement. Dunn said the division also waited until after submitting its official enrolment numbers to the education ministry. The count that determines school funding is done on Sept. 30 each year.

"It felt very much underhanded," she said. "It felt very dishonest on behalf of the school board."

If the board had disclosed their decision sooner, she may have moved her sons to public schools, she said.

Marie Hambly is another frustrated parent. She was considering transferring her younger daughter to online learning for the second quarter of the year to help her deal with mental health concerns.

She's now reconsidering that decision. If her daughter comes home this fall, she won't be able to go back to school in person for the rest of the year.

"I'm a little miffed right now," she said. "I'm not really happy with the board's decision. And I don't feel that they were honest and transparent with parents around this decision. So for me, that's very disappointing."

Cusack said Catholic schools do have the flexibility to allow students to transfer between the options in extenuating circumstances.

Edmonton Public Schools intends to stick with its plan to offer three more times for families to change their minds.

Edmonton public is asking students and families to give notice now of their intention for the second quarter of the year, spokesperson Anna Batchelor said in an email.

Cusack said he's unconcerned about students potentially transferring to another school division that offers more flexibility moving between online and in-school classes.

Starting today and ending on Oct. 15, Edmonton Catholic families will have access to a link in PowerSchool where they can choose a learning option for their child or children.

The next quartermester begins Nov. 10.

Each school division has taken a different approach to accommodating concerns about the spread of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19.

In the Parkland School Division, which runs public schools in Spruce Grove and Stony Plain, students can move to online learning at any point. K-9 students who were learning online but want to come back to class in person have five points during the year to make the move. High school students can return to in-person classes at four points during the year.

Spokesperson Jordi Weidman said one of those transition dates for K-9 students was Monday. 197 students opted to come back to classrooms, and 100 toggled to online learning.

Students in the Calgary Board of Education who wanted to learn online had to choose that option at the beginning of the school year. Students who are learning online in Alberta's largest school division have just one chance to return to in-person classes, in February, and must notify schools by Jan. 8.