FAIRFAX COUNTY, Va. (ABC7) — With the start of an unprecedented school year nearly here, families throughout the region are bracing for a new normal. For many parents, that means worrying about the challenges of working full-time while their kids are doing virtual learning at home.

"I've heard literally from hundreds of parents who, like me, support the school division's decision to do virtual learning, but also are very concerned about how they're going to juggle that with their own jobs when we get to September," said Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay.

Fairfax County Public Schools is the largest school system in Virginia, with nearly 190,000 students. And on September 8, those students will start the year with 100 percent online instruction.

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"We've always considered this not to be just a school problem. This is a community problem that will take the schools and the county working together to solve," said McKay. "What our Board of Supervisors has been clear on is that the county has an important role to play in narrowing the achievement gap and helping our working families to be able to go back to work without having to be concerned about not working, not being able to pay the bills because they have to take care of and help their kids get logged on and learn during the day."

McKay says that's why the county is launching a new childcare program that aims to help working parents. He made the announcement this week on social media and in his community newsletter.

"This is not going to solve everyone's problems, this is not going to be the great equalizer, but I think it is going to be a tremendous help to families in need in Fairfax County," he said.

The county recently held a socially distant summer camp known as 'Camp Fairfax', with about 320 kids attending each week. The camp took place inside FCPS school buildings, and included strict safety measures and coronavirus precautions.

"We're talking about a much smaller population of children, we're talking about being able to spread out in multiple rooms in school buildings," he said. "We're talking about protocols for checking temperatures and interviewing everyone before they come in the building."

McKay said the camp's success is a big part of the reason the county now feels comfortable launching a similar program for students this fall. The 'School Aged Child Care (SACC) - Supporting Return to School (SRS)' will be held Monday thru Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.

The program will be offered at 37 FCPS school buildings, most of those Title I funded schools or FCPS food distribution sites. Two of those locations will serve students with special needs.

"It's really designed to help kids with the greatest needs," said McKay. "So we've begun outreach for at-risk youth, we're working with our schools. We have a database of children whose families receive free and reduced price lunches already, and we're reaching out to all of them to get an idea of whether they would be interested in enrolling in this program," he said. "And then later in August we'll put out a regular notice for everyone else to apply to the program."

He said the county's most vulnerable students would be prioritized during that registration process.

"We know that our at-risk children have greater challenges with internet connectivity, and may not have the kind of support structure," he said. "So what we're attempting to do in this program is not duplicate any of the online learning, but frankly have staff there to make sure kids are online and have the technical support that they need."

The program will be staffed by county employees through the Fairfax County Office For Children, which has worked to provide educational care for students before and after school long before the coronavirus pandemic began.

The cost to families is still being finalized, but McKay said it would be an adjusting sliding fee scale.

"So it's based on the ability to pay," he said, explaining that the county is prepared to pay subsidies to help families in need. "This will cost the county significant resources to put in place, but what I've said is that it will cost us more if we don't do anything to help kids who otherwise might not be learning at all."

County staff said they hope to serve approximately 2,000 students in the new childcare program, but exact enrollment numbers aren't yet known. McKay promised more details would be coming soon.

"We may have to expand it if the demand is great, but it's too early to tell at this point. It's a two phase registration. One, the outreach to our targeted families, and then two, August 24, opening it up for anyone to apply."

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Similar efforts to help families with childcare are already underway in the City of Fairfax and the City of Falls Church. To learn more about those programs, click here.