Firedup kids get back to classes in Oakland
Reopening is halting as teacher shortage scrambles schedules
It was a first day of school unlike any other. There were no tears and no hesitation Tuesday at Oakland’s Madison Park Academy Primary as the youngest students headed through the gates for their first day of inperson learning, joining classmates they had seen on screens for a year.
They skipped, did cartwheels and never looked back at their parents peering through the cyclone fence, unable to enter the school grounds.
Students throughout Oakland who hadn’t set foot in a classroom in a year rushed onto school grounds as sites reopened to the youngest students.
“I feel good. And happy,” said Steven Hernandez, 5, at Madison Park. He anticipated that he would be “writing and doing my homework,” after settling into his desk, his mask on and spaced several feet from his teacher and classmates.
His mom, Celia Gomez, said she was excited for him to learn away from a screen after 143 school days of distance learning. “He’s out of the house.”
About 50% of eligible students in preschool through second grade were expected at reopened schools across Oakland on Tuesday, said
Superintendent Kyla Johnson-Trammell, with more expected in the coming days and weeks as they adjust to the new schedule. Students are in class for only 2½ hours in the afternoon two days a week.
“This is a marathon, not a sprint; an era, not a moment,” she said of the process of reopening amid an ongoing pandemic
The reopening came in the wake of a year of distance learning that left many students struggling academically and emotionally and many parents frantically balancing work and child care.
The reopening of some Oakland Unified School District campuses Tuesday was one success amid confusion and uncertainty surrounding the return to inperson learning. On Friday, just days before schools were set to open, the district revealed that more than a dozen elementary schools and preschools would not be reopening as planned because of a shortage of teachers. Staff at these sites opted not to return until required to do so in midApril, despite incentives including an $800 stipend and prioritized vaccine access.
School board President Shanthi Gonzales said Friday that the setback was discouraging: “It’s disappointing, and I’m very sympathetic to the families. I wish more teachers were volunteering.”
Those who did volunteer were busy with preparations Tuesday. Madison Park elementary teacher Precious James said she feels “very, very, very, very safe” to be back. “Just to see little people on campus is exciting for me,” she said. “COVID19 took something from us we’re getting back today. We’re getting our little people back.”
Under an agreement between the district and the union, all elementary students and at least one middle or high school grade will return to classrooms for some level of inperson learning by April 19. Vulnerable older groups will also be allowed to return in midApril.
Families have the option to continue distance learning, and around 45% of the 36,000 students in the district are opting not to return to inperson instruction, according to OUSD spokesperson John Sasaki.
Those choosing to return to classrooms will spend the mornings online for virtual instruction and then head to schools for inperson time in the afternoons. The district has emphasized that inperson learning will focus on instruction, offering students time for socialization, academic resources and other support.
“This is a long time coming,” said Selam Brown, a kindergarten parent, whose son IV (pronounced “ivy,” short for Malchester Brown IV), attends Thornhill Elementary in the Montclair neighborhood and was very excited to go in person.
On Tuesday morning, IV, 6, went to kindergarten as usual on Zoom, where he and his classmates solved math puzzles, played learning games and shared in a round of showandtell.
After an early lunch of macaroni and cheese and apples, IV was loaded into the car a half hour ahead of schedule by his dad, Malchester, who was concerned about traffic.
Outside the school, a line of students and parents, spaced 3 feet apart, coiled down the street. When the gates eventually opened, each parent presented a checklist to school staff, attesting that their child was free of symptoms. Passing inspection, each student was given a green paper, the ticket through the doors. IV skipped through the gates as his dad yelled through the fences, trying to say goodbye. Eventually IV looked up, waved, and didn’t look back again.
Selam Brown is grateful that IV was well prepared by his teachers for inperson learning. She trusts his school and his teacher to keep him safe.
“We’re so thankful for these teachers and what they’ve done over the past year,” she said. “They’re amazing.” According to a district survey, over 80% of families at IV’s school planned to send their children back to classrooms.
Brown said that as happy as she was to send IV back, even so late into the school year, she and her family plan to stay in the district, unlike families fleeing to private schools.
But it’s not unconditional support. “I now have a bad taste in my mouth.”
Some of the dissatisfaction is connected to the minimal amount of time in classrooms. OUSD parent Megan Bacigalupi said that while she is happy her two kids will get to return to Crocker Highlands Elementary School, “it is not nearly enough.” Bacigalupi is also a parent advocate with OUSD Parents for Transparency and Safe Reopening.
“Given the change in distancing guidance, OUSD should be offering students who have been out of their classrooms for over a year as much time as possible inside their school building,” she said, referring to the Centers for Disease Control guidance changing from 6 feet of distance between desks to 3 feet.
At Madison Park, parent Joe Salt said he didn’t mind that his twin boys, Steven and John, would be back only in the afternoons until summer. His kindergartners, who “could not wait for this day,” were happy to have any school at all.
“It doesn’t matter,” he said. “Whatever works for them.”
“COVID19 took something from us we’re getting back today. We’re getting our little people back.” Precious James, Madison Park teacher