Governor Newsom releases new guidelines for school reopening
Today, Governor Newsom held a noon press conference to lay out new state guidance on the reopening of schools for the fall 2020 semester.
While the Governor addressed some of the demands that CFT articulated to him and state leaders in the letter that we sent on Monday, we still believe that there is more to be done to ensure the safety of California’s teachers, school staff, students, and communities.
The Governor laid out five main points that comprise the state’s guidance for school reopening. They are as follows:
Safe in-person school based on local health data, meaning that counties must be off the state monitoring list for 14 days before they can reopen.
Masks are required for all school staff and students in 3rd grade and older; masks or face shields are strongly encouraged for students in 2nd grade and younger.
A physical distancing standard that requires school staff stay six feet away from one another and from students.
Regular testing for staff based on cohort models, paid by health plans, as well as prioritizing the state’s contact tracing system for schools.
Rigorous distance learning that includes daily live interaction between staff and students and appropriate curriculum, including curriculum for English language learners and students with IEPs.
While we believe these steps move toward the demands that CFT has outlined, we do not think they go far enough to protect the health and safety of our school communities, and we will continue to advocate for greater measures to ensure that the demands articulated in our letter to state leaders are realized.
Check out the online version of the Governor's school reopening guidance for more details.
Governor Newsom also indicated that reopening guidance for the UC and CSU systems and our state community college system are in development and will be announced soon.
Novato Federation of Teachers President Mariah Fisher joins Jeff Freitas for FB Live
On today’s Facebook Live broadcast, Mariah Fisher, the President of the Novato Federation of Teachers, joined CFT President Jeff Freitas.
Marin County, where the Novato school district is located, initially announced that schools would reopen in August with very few health considerations for the reality of the COVID-19 pandemic. For example, the district was proposing that all schools should have all students on campus five days a week, with four feet of social distance, and that in-person instruction would start on August 20.
On July 16, more than 150 Marin County teachers and parents held an action at the Marin County Office of Education building in Terra Linda. Because of pressure from teachers and parents, the county backed down from its initial direction that all schools should be physically reopened, and the county’s schools will all be opening through distance learning, at least through September.
Watch Jeff’s update and interview with Mariah to hear about how direct action makes a difference in the lives of our members and their students.
Now is the time to tell the U.S. Senate: Pass the HEROES Act!
The U.S. Congress is returning to session next week, and Mitch McConnell has indicated that a COVID-19 relief package will be among the bills that the Senate will be considering.
In order to fully recover from this pandemic, the federal government must step up with essential aid to our schools, colleges and universities, and state and local governments.
It is critical that CFT members contact our California senators and ask them to pass the HEROES Act. You can also contact your friends and family members in other states and ask them to urge their senators to secure this funding for state and local governments.
For more information about the HEROES Act and to learn what you can do to ensure it’s passage, you can visit the HEROES Act Toolkit on the AFT website.
