Fairfield students and parents with immunocompromised families flocked to Independence Hall Monday to call for a remote teaching option.

Mason Yeoh is a junior at Fairfield Warde High School who has a brother that is undergoing cancer treatment.

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His mother, Lezah Yeoh, says that Mason made a poster that says, "I love my school, but I also love my brother."

Lezah says Mason has high-functioning autism, which means all his needs can't be met through homeschooling.

"He requires speech therapy, he requires group therapy and that won't be available for him," Lezah says.

Local school boards are not authorized to offer long-term remote learning until the 2022 school year.

State lawmakers say the focus has been on in-person learning, but state Rep. Jennifer Leeper says federal dollars could be turned toward a statewide or regional remote academy for the fall.

"Unfortunately, with the guidance we have now, they're being left behind," Leeper says.

Parents say with a few weeks left until school starts, they feel like they don't have a choice.

"We can't choose....we love our children," Lezah says. "We have to protect our children; we have to protect our families."

The Fairfield Board of Education says it is "looking to develop policy" on how remote learning can be used to help vulnerable families.