Letter of Displeasure

I wrote this letter to my council person regarding reopening in person school. I hope if you share my concerns, you will do the same:

Dear Councilman,

I am a ______ resident and an experienced educator in the New York City Department of Education. I have never been as anxious and skeptical about an upcoming school year as I am about this one, the 2020-21 school year. I fear for my own safety and that of my family which includes my husband and two young children, as well as for the safety of my students and their families. There are significant questions and concerns that educators and school staff have regarding returning to in person teaching that are not being addressed by you and the Committee on Education, Mayor DeBlasio or Chancellor Carranza. 

As we see the numbers of COVID-19 cases skyrocketing in other states with many outbreaks associated with reopened schools. Yet, we continue to plan to return to schools that are consistently underfunded, in buildings that are sorely in need of updating in the best of times, and that could not possibly comply with CDC requirements now. If malls are not allowed to open without a properly working HVAC system, how is it possible that schools would be able to open without the same requirement? If indoor dining is still not allowed because the virus spreads in enclosed spaces, then how are schools supposed to operate?

It is also much more disruptive to education for the school community to be open, then closed, then open again, then closed, and so on. If we were to begin remotely and phase in in person classes in a strategic way, this might be avoided. However, that does not appear to be what the city has in mind. The reopening document that Mayor DiBlasio released was intentionally vague and does not answer many of the questions many educators are rightly asking. We cannot be expected to put ourselves, our families, and our school families at risk without knowing what we are walking into. It is a mistake to leave the decisions of scheduling, cleaning, and supplies up to the individual schools to figure out, especially without the help of additional funds, custodians, and school nurses. There is just no way that the current custodians can clean the schools multiple times a day, to the CDC standard without help. The principals’ union, CSA, has outlined their concerns in their letter to Mayor DiBlasio.

In the plan regarding testing and contact tracing, there is much to be desired. If a member of the school community tests positive for COVID-19, that test result will be received after several days of that person coming in contact with others at the school and unknowingly passing the virus. With windows that only partially open and with students eating lunch in classrooms without masks, this is a particularly precarious situation for anyone who has to supervise these students. There needs to be something better, especially a  school that boasts a staff of over 200 and a student body of over 4,000 

The bottom line is that New York City must do a better job of protecting school staff, teachers and students.