CFT members say they are ready to return to school with vaccine and safety measures
CFT members indicated in a recent poll that they were ready to return to in-person instruction so long as they were offered the vaccine and safety measures were in place. The results of the poll, which was conducted between January 25 and February 5, come as President Joe Biden and the CDC both urge states to prioritize vaccinating teachers and school workers.
When considering how to safely returning to in-person instruction, 90% of CFT members rated as extremely important or important each of the following:
Having an adequate supply of personal protective equipment, or PPE, including masks, gloves, face shields, and cleaning equipment.
The results of this poll are timely, as earlier this week Blue Shield announced the goal of being able to administer 3 million shots a week by March 1 in California. And today, Governor Newsom announced that California will set aside 10% of all first doses of COVID-19 vaccines for educators and support staff starting March 1. With the increased production and delivery of vaccines that we are anticipating, we absolutely can vaccinate every teacher and school worker in the state.
But we don’t need to wait until March 1. More and more counties are already vaccinating teachers and school workers. For example, Santa Cruz County vaccinated 1,500 school employees in the last week and they are making vaccinations a part of the phased-in reopening approach for which CFT has long advocated.
In Berkeley, teachers reached a deal this week to phase in the reopening of schools to hybrid teaching and in-person instruction by including educator and classified worker vaccinations as part of their agreement. Vaccinations for teachers and school staff will begin February 22 and continue through the spring as the schools phase in reopening for students, beginning with lower grades first.
Governor Newsom and the state legislature are still hammering out a deal for school reopening. But in the meantime, we shouldn’t wait to vaccinate our school workers. The progress over the last few weeks is promising, and we will continue to urge state and local officials to prioritize vaccinating teachers and classified employees to pave the way for a safe, phased reopening of our schools.
AFT and AAUP launch “New Deal for Higher Education”
On February 10, the AFT and the American Association of University Professors launched a “New Deal for Higher Education,” a national effort calling for massive federal investment to make public colleges and universities more accessible to all students. It lists, among other elements, free college, student debt relief, and sustainable workplaces for faculty, as the pathway forward. The proposal also focuses on equity and access for Black, Indigenous, and Latinx students.
To launch the initiative, AFT President Randi Weingarten, AAUP President Irene Mulvey, Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.), Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), and the Roosevelt Institute’s Suzanne Kahn participated in a panel outlining the ways we might reimagine higher education with the partnership of the Biden Administration.
The New Deal for Higher Education centers on four main values:
Building prosperity from the bottom up.
Advancing social, racial, and economic justice.
Strengthening democracy and civil society.
Fostering knowledge and innovation.
As President Weingarten said on the panel: “We know from experience that we can’t create a system that works for all if we don’t allow everyone to access it. We know we can’t have meaningful job security and voice if faculty and staff aren’t treated with dignity and respect. That’s why we need a New Deal for Higher Education.”
CFT President Jeff Freitas joined by local leaders for his weekly Up Front broadcast
Jeff Freitas was joined by Greater Santa Cruz Federation of Teachers President Casey Carlson and Pajaro Valley Federation of Teachers President Nelly Vaquera-Boggs on this week’s Up Front Broadcast to discuss reopening schools for in-person instruction. Watch on CFT's Facebook page or on CFT’s YouTube page.
