Plea for pivot on school policies
Every day teachers, school professionals, parents, and students are living with unsettling consequences of inaction, lack of creativity, poor leadership, and an utter disregard for the voices who knew better.
An open letter to Gov. Ned Lamont and Commissioner of Education Miguel Cardona
More than 50 school days have passed since teachers across the state held car parades, rallies, started speaking at local Board of Education meetings, writing letters to the editors, and calling for safer reopenings, stronger professional development, and equitable resources for all students and staff. When we started these pleas in late August and early September leadership at every level said, “Connecticut’s numbers are low. The data supports going back in person.” With a “wait and see” attitude, districts moved ahead with reopening plans, in effect making an experiment out of our physical health, emotional well-being, and student access to quality education. We didn’t know what the consequences of Connecticut’s plans for reopening might be, but educators did warn that the consequences might be severe.
Today we have the hindsight to reevaluate our plans, assess the damages, make changes to policies and protocols, and take action to ensure that our schools, our students, and our professional staff don’t also become victims of this devastating virus. Every day teachers, school professionals, parents, and students are living with unsettling consequences of inaction, lack of creativity, poor leadership, and an utter disregard for the voices who knew better.
We represent unique districts that face a myriad of issues associated with teaching and learning in these uncertain times, but rest assured, the state’s inability to take a firm stand on supporting safety in schools has cost both staff and students statewide. Districts have been able to hide some of the darkest realities of what teaching during a pandemic means for teachers and students. However hidden, these consequences are very real, and some, if not dealt with quickly, will last for many years after a vaccine and return to “normalcy.” A sampling of the most pressing issues facing our community's teachers and all stakeholders are as follows:.
Generalized fear and anxiety are widespread among teachers, staff, and students.
Educators and students are sick.
Class sizes are inequitable across the state and even within districts.
Students across the state face inequitable access to technology.
Districts provide inequitable access to live instruction.
Staffing shortages put students in danger and hinder quality instruction.
Cohorting and social distancing are aspirational at best in most schools.
Educators have not had adequate training in livestreaming.
Community members are not adhering to basic safety standards such as maskwearing and social distancing, putting everyone at greater risk.
1Morale among educators is at an all-time low.
Teachers and their coworkers are frayed and communities are fractured. Unless the state steps in with immediate and firm action, as well as access to funds and resources, districts will continue to spiral. Governor Lamont and Commissioner Cardona, we implore you to consider the following actions, at a minimum. These actions echo the recommendations in the
Board of Education Union Coalition’s Safe and Successful Schools Now report. For some, these “asks” may seem unrealistic or unfair, but to us, these are measures that are desperately needed to keep everyone safe, avoid catastrophic loss, and show your education community that you care about their general health and well-being. Take it from the people who have been on the front lines every single day of this pandemic. We need the following:
A full pivot to remote learning through mid January. Teaching remotely from Thanksgiving to mid-January addresses the holiday surge of cases, allows for teachers and families to properly quarantine if they travel, and allows districts to re-open schools with healthy and productive staff.
1Widespread access to free COVID testing for all employees and early access to the vaccine when it is available. We are taking risks each day to keep the schools open for the children.
Suspension of state standardized testing. With inequitable instruction across the state, the scores would be invalid measures of student success and irrelevant during a pandemic.
Suspension of state minimum instructional hours so local districts can be more creative about in-person school days.
Proactive planning to address the needs of our most vulnerable students.
A state mandate for unions to have a seat at the table in all negotiations and planning moving forward.
It’s time for state leaders, local superintendents, and Boards of Education to stop trying to stuff very new issues, needs, and situations into a very old and broken box. It’s not working! The concerns that teachers had at the beginning of the school year are being realized every day, and fixing the situation is beyond the work that teachers can do within their local districts. We need consistent and bold action from you to keep our schools safe, and quite literally, save lives. Your failure to act will have life-long consequences for teaching and learning throughout the state, and have a negative impact on a generation of students.
Darien Education Association President Joslyn DeLancey; Greenwich Education Association President Carol Sutton; Trumbull Education Association President John Mastrianni; Brookfield Education Association President Brian Kwas; Westport Education Association co-Presidents John Horrigan, Karen DeFelice; Steve Ruland, NEA-Ridgefield; NEA Danbury President Erin Daly, New Canaan Education Association President Vivian Birdsall; CEA New Milford President Kim Patella and Shelton Education Association President Deborah Keller.