State lawmakers are vote Thursday on the governor’s $2 billion plan to incentivize the reopening of transitional kindergarten through second grade by the beginning of April.
The governor’s plan sets aside $2 billion in incentives to help school districts open schools safely, along with $4.6 billion in additional funding.
But the plan does not mandate schools to open, which will not happen without the approval of teachers.
The over 600 teachers and staff at the Sequoia Union High School District in San Mateo County are voting this week on a comprehensive reopening place.
“We’re a high school district, and the science tells us that high school students act like adults in terms of getting infected. We don’t want to come back into a situation that gets anyone sick,” said union president Edith Salvatore.
She says safety is not the only factor that teachers were looking for in the proposal.
“Didn’t alter what classes students were able to take, didn’t change students’ teachers and upset the relationships that have already been formed and communities that have already been formed in classrooms, and also didn’t overburden teachers who have already had to learn an entirely new method of delivering curriculum.”
San Mateo County teachers became eligible for the vaccine on Feb. 22 with a plan to return to in-person learning on April 5.
“It’s felt a little haphazard,” said Salvatore. “Our members have referred to it sort of as the Hunger Games, getting out there and trying to get your appointments.”
The plan calls for a hybrid model to keep from overcrowding classrooms and accommodate families reluctant to send their kids back in person.
