Too soon or not soon enough?
The pace of reopening has divided school communities in the East Bay as districts begin to welcome back young students for in-person learning.
Some San Ramon Valley Unified and Orinda Union Schools reopened this week for kindergarten and elementary students under a hybrid model where parents could opt-in to sending their kids back to the classroom.
During a virtual community event Wednesday, some teachers and parents spoke out against reopening.
“Opening the schools is not going to solve the problem it’s actually going to make things worse,” said Yvette Felarca, a teacher at Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School in Berkeley. “Even just partial reopenings of the schools will mean increase of community spread of COVID.”
Felarca says all teachers should be vaccinated before they are asked to return to working in person.
Vaccinations were also one of the central issues during a protracted negotiation between teachers and school officials in San Francisco.
“Many teachers like myself, some of us are high risk… I would go through the crazy-fying experience of teaching online if it means saving and preserving our students and their families’ lives,” said Felarca.
California public health officials have said it is safe for schools to reopen before teachers are vaccinated depending on the rate of community transmission, if other precautions such as masking and distancing are taken.
Supporters of reopening the schools say that remote learning is not working for students or parents and has had disastrous consequences.
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