Virus cases cause Catholic schools to delay opening
Teachers at other schools resist in-person classes
More Chicago-area Catholic schools have delayed the start of in-person classes because of positive cases of COVID-19 in their communities, as teachers at other private schools show resistance to returning for in-person classes.
St. Alexander School in Palos Heights had already begun the year in person when officials decided to suspend classes until Sept. 8, following at least one positive test for COVID-19, the Archdiocese of Chicago confirmed.
St. Mary School in Riverside and Mary Seat of Wisdom in Park Ridge had not yet started classes when coronavirus cases prompted them to postpone their start dates to Sept. 8. St. Mary will offer virtual learning in the meantime.
Also, at Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Glenview, classes for kindergarten students were delayed after one teacher tested positive, said archdiocese spokesman Manuel Gonzales. The positive test came in before the start of classes, and the delay will only affect the kindergarten class as that team of teachers quarantines over the coming weeks.
On Monday, Loyola Academy in Wilmette announced it would move to remote learning for two weeks after six students tested positive for COVID-19, while 63 others were placed in quarantine for issues related to exposure, travel or symptoms, officials said in a statement on the Loyola website.
Many archdiocesan and other private schools have started their 2020-21 school year, but some teachers and parents continue to raise concerns about the return to in-person classes. In the Chicago area, a much larger proportion of private schools are reopening compared with public schools, which have mostly reverted to remote learning.
A group of parents and teachers, calling themselves Arch Teachers for a Safe Return, continue to demand the archdiocese move all schools to remote learning to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
“We believe that the archdiocese is putting people in danger,” the Rev. C.J. Hawking, of Arise Chicago, an interfaith workers’ rights group, said at a news conference earlier this month.
The archdiocese terminated the contract of a teacher from St. Francis Xavier in Wilmette after she refused to return for inperson classes.
Other nonreligious, independent private schools — some with more resources and fewer students than public schools — are also set to reopen for the fall. Some parents with the means to do so are eyeing these schools as an option to send their children back into school buildings, and many parents whose children already attend private school have also said they’re grateful to have the option.
But some educators at those schools area also hoping for an eleventh-hour reprieve from in-person classes.
Anonymously, teachers at several Chicago-area private schools — including the Latin School of Chicago, University of Chicago Laboratory Schools, Francis W. Parker and Lake Forest Country Day School — have signed onto a national statement calling for private schools to start the year online.
Chicago Public Schools, which originally planned for a hybrid reopening in September, shifted remote for the first quarter after sustained opposition from parents and the Chicago Teachers Union. At most private schools, teachers are not unionized, with the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools being an exception.
One local private schoolteacher, an at-will employee who asked to remain anonymous, acknowledged her school has more resources than others to spend on safety precautions, but she
“We believe that the archdiocese is putting people in danger.”
— The Rev. C.J. Hawking, of Arise Chicago, an interfaith workers’ rights group
does not believe those measures are enough.
“I’m fortunate that they have the income to spend on some PPE equipment and whatnot, so they’re taking a lot of steps,” she said. “But it’s not a guarantee that I won’t get sick.”
She said she would prefer to teach remotely because her husband has a heart condition. However, she’s afraid she’ll lose her job if she doesn’t teach in person or speaks out publicly.
“I am wholly devoted to my profession. I don’t see it as a job; I really believe this is something I was meant to do and born into,” she said. “So it’s very difficult to want to voice something without being scared about what the repercussions could be.”
Another Chicago-area teacher similarly asked to remain anonymous out of concern for her job. She said she used to value the freedom of working in a private school, where she felt she could be more creative with her teaching.
“Once I got into the private, independent schools network, I thought this was for me,” she said. “There’s no restrictions with the union versus admin, and the professional development is amazing. But I’m now realizing in the pandemic that, without the protection of a union, our rights are stripped.”
She echoed concerns made by public schoolteachers weeks earlier: School reopening plans give parents the flexibility to choose what is safest for their children, while teachers are required to work unless they can prove they are high-risk.
“Families can opt out of in-person learning, zero questions asked. Teachers have been told to reach out to HR but are met with resistance as we request to teach from home, which we have been doing since March,” she said. “Are our lives expendable?”