ABCFT YOUnionews for September 17, 2021
Says every teacher ever.
MEMBER BENEFITS - Wellness Wednesday Archive
Maintaining our mental health and well-being is important for all of us. Last year, ABCFT offered Wellness Wednesdays members had an opportunity to virtually participate in Guided Meditation and Chair Yoga. These weekly sessions gave members a chance to practice self-care. Even if you were not able to attend these wonderful restorative practices you can still access the archive by using the link below.
Click here to view the recording of the Guided Meditation and Chair Yoga for the weekly archives
In partnership with Kaiser Permanente, you can also access mindfulness resources for all ABCFT members. For Kaiser members, you have free access to the app Calm and myStrength which offers personalized self-care programs based on the cognitive behavioral therapy model. Please be kind to yourself and find time in your busy schedule to take care of yourself.
SEPTEMBER ACADEMIC SERVICES UPDATE
This month’s academic service update is vital for all teachers. We hope that you will take a moment to look at this monthly report which discusses changes in academic services. This document provides the union with a means of giving the District feedback on the many programs or changes they are proposing at any one time. Without your feedback or questions on these changes, it is harder for ABCFT to slow down and modify the district’s neverending rollout of new projects. Please submit your comments and questions to the appropriate ABCFT liaison.
For Elementary curricular issues please email Kelley at Kelley.Forsythe@abcusd.us if you have any questions or concerns.
For Secondary curricular issues please email Rich at Richard.Saldana@abcusd.us if you have any questions or concerns.
Click Here For This Month’s Full Report
ABCFT PRESIDENT’S REPORT - Ray Gaer
Communication is a union’s most important tool for advocating for its members at the bargaining table. Every conversation with the membership is focused on the end result of negotiating for the future prosperity and wellbeing of ABCFT members. This weekly report aims to keep the membership informed about issues that impact their working/learning conditions and their mental well-being. Together we make the YOUnion.
I’m not sure what to write today. For myself, this was a week of representations and problem-solving. The crushing fact that there are not enough custodians, paraeducators, secretaries, or substitutes is having an impact on our already strained school systems. I’ve been communicating with human resources regularly to inquire about why we are seeing so many vacant jobs and when we can hope to see those positions filled. Dr. Zietlow has repeatedly that they are processing applications, interviewing, and getting people assigned as fast as possible, however, the fact remains that there are not enough people applying for positions to fill all the needs of the district. This is a universal problem for districts across the country.
In the meantime, my advice is that you make sure if you are covering classes on your prep hour as a secondary teacher you get paid for your time. If you are taking overflow IEPs make sure you are getting extra pay. If you are asked to do contact tracing in your after-work hours either make sure you are getting paid or make sure your supervisor knows that you are not available after hours or on the weekends. Now don’t get me wrong there are lots of things that teachers, nurses, and SLPs do outside the scope of your contract day but what I’m saying is that if there are additional expectations asked of you that don’t seem reasonable then you need to get paid for your professional credentialed services.
Next Tuesday, from 3:30 to 4:30 will be our first member-only YOUnion Chat for this school year. I hope that each of you will join us that day for our usual informational bits, guest speakers, and our time to have Q and A with the membership. Our guest speaker next week will be the ABC Director of Elementary Schools, Melinda Ortiz who provides guidance and leadership for the elementary principals. She will be providing clarification of the district’s COVID protocols. We were hoping that she will help our members have a better understanding of what principals are being asked to do and how the COVID protocols and contact tracing can impact our workspaces. Your participation in this discussion is greatly appreciated. Your feedback is the backbone of our organization and it helps to provide the guiding sentiments to guide the ABCFT leadership and negotiating team. I look forward to seeing you all on Tuesday.
Lastly, one look at the amount of content this week and you know we’ve been extra busy but we are working on some articles for next week such as the controversial critical race theory discussion that happened in Cerritos this week. We are also hearing that there are additional changes to how students and employees are quarantined and finally, Ruben should be back for another informative marathon article.
I hope you have a wonderful Friday and a restful weekend.
In YOUnity,
Ray Gaer
President, ABCFT
CALIFORNIA FEDERATION OF TEACHERS
Educators and Classified Professionals Celebrate Governor Newsom’s Recall Victory
CFT looks forward to continuing to work with Governor Newsom to shape California’s education system to be the best in the nation
SACRAMENTO, CA – CFT President Jeff Freitas released the following statement on the failed recall of California Governor Gavin Newsom:
“We are thrilled that California voters overwhelmingly rejected this cynical recall attempt, choosing to keep Gavin Newsom, a strong champion of public education, in office. CFT members worked tirelessly to defeat this recall because we knew this was a power grab by forces that want to destroy public education, who do not have the best interests of our students or our communities at heart.
“Defeating this recall is a step towards protecting the progress that we have made in California over decades of hard work with our partners in public education, in the labor movement, and in our communities. This defeat sends a clear message that we will not go backward.
“Parents, students, educators, and classified professionals want the same thing: for students to be able to safely learn in their classrooms, with fully resourced schools supporting them. Governor Newsom has worked closely with CFT to get us through the crisis of the pandemic and focus on the issues that matter most to communities across the state. We look forward to continuing to build on our progress, and we are ready to get to work.”
The latest CFT articles and news stories can be found here on the PreK12 news feed on the CFT.org website.
AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS
Follow AFT President Randi Weingarten: http://twitter.com/rweingarten
----- NEWS STORY HIGHLIGHT-----
Majority of U.S. schools yet to meet White House demand for testing and vaccines
For schools to stay open and safe, President Joe Biden said last Thursday, they need to require universal masking, vaccinations for teachers and staff and regular tests for unvaccinated people. So far, the largest U.S. districts are succeeding at masking, but only a minority are implementing the others. Out of 100 large districts, including the biggest urban districts in every state, nine in 10 are requiring students to wear masks, according to the Center on Reinventing Public Education at the University of Washington. A quarter are requiring teachers to be vaccinated, while 15 are regularly testing students. “What seems to be holding back many schools are the political and practical challenges — how do they handle positive cases and false positives, how do they address angry parents who don’t want to see their kids tested, or identified as a positive case, and children who don’t want to be swabbed,” said Scott Gottlieb, former Food and Drug Administration commissioner and a Pfizer board member. Complicating readiness on issues like testing was officials’ “intense desire to return to normalcy” heading into this year, when it looked like the pandemic was waning, said Sasha Pudelski, advocacy director of AASA, the School Superintendents Association. As a result, she said, some places were less prepared for another round of intense virus mitigation. “There was in many communities perhaps a false sense of security that masking and quarantining and remote learning wouldn’t be part of this school year. And they’re getting a rude awakening with delta that it is, and it has to be, to protect kids.”
New York Times Washington Post
Newsom soundly defeats California recall attempt
California Gov. Gavin Newsom survived a historic recall election Tuesday, winning a major vote of confidence during a COVID-19 pandemic that has shattered families and livelihoods and tested his ability to lead the state through the largest worldwide health crisis in modern times. With more than 8m votes tallied, the recall campaign was capturing only a third of them. Making an appearance at the California Democratic Party headquarters that lasted less than five minutes, Mr. Newsom said voters had chosen diversity and inclusion over cynicism and negativity. “We owe our kids a deeper sense of respect and all of us as adults have a responsibility to disregard this false separateness,” Newsom said during brief remarks that included no questions from the media. “We have so much more in common as a state and a nation than we give ourselves credit for.”
Los Angeles Times Sacramento Bee San Francisco Chronicle San Mateo Daily Journal
----- VACCINE NEWS -----
California districts in no rush to introduce COVID vaccine mandates
Last week, Los Angeles USD became the first major school district in the nation to require vaccines for students; however, it does not appear at present that California's districts will follow en masse in issuing similar mandates. “Some districts may hesitate because they feel it’s intrusive,” said Troy Flint, spokesperson for the California School Boards Association. “Some may feel that it’s too politically charged. Others may feel they’ve been able to mitigate the spread of COVID-19." Even at neighboring districts like Newport-Mesa USD in Orange County and Duarte USD 20 miles east of Los Angeles, school leaders have not started considering a vaccine requirement for students. At San Diego USD, the state’s second-largest district with close to 100,000 students, Board President Richard Barrera said the district is “not quite ready to discuss vaccine mandates for students.” But Zachary Patterson, a student board member and a senior in the district, said he believes the science is clear behind vaccines. “I would support any resolution brought forth,” he said. “As we see LAUSD moving in this direction, it definitely paves the way for smaller school districts to consider things like that.”
‘Pool testing’ to combat COVID on campus grows popular in California schools
To simplify the often-confusing COVID testing process in schools, an increasing number of districts in California are turning to “pool testing” as a way to save time, reduce hassles and keep students in school. With pool testing, nasal swabs from up to 25 asymptomatic students are submitted together for a single PCR test. If the test is negative, the entire class is assumed to be COVID-free. If the test is positive, students are given individual rapid tests, and those who test positive are sent home to quarantine. Others in the class can continue attending school as long as they test negative twice a week. Administered weekly, pool tests are an efficient way to catch outbreaks on campus with minimal impact on parents and teachers, public health experts said. “Pool testing is a very good screening tool. It saves time; it saves money; it can even be self-administered. Anyone can do it,” said Dr. Karen Smith, former director of the California Department of Public Health under Gov. Jerry Brown. “Many schools are in a period of confusion right now about testing. I hope more of them become aware of the free testing programs, such as pool testing, available to them.”
Huntington Beach City offers no discussion on Let Them Breathe resolution
A resolution presented to the Huntington Beach City School District seeking the removal of mandatory mask requirements fell to the wayside during Tuesday’s board meeting. Board members offered no discussion on the item, which was added to the agenda after a request from Lauren Hernandez of Huntington Beach. The item, affiliated with the group “Let Them Breathe,” was also introduced at the Newport-Mesa and Irvine school district board meetings Tuesday night, among others. Hernandez was signed up to speak via Zoom on the item, which asked the board to advocate to the California Department of Public Health for the removal of mandatory masks, quarantines and asymptomatic testing. But she appeared to leave the Zoom meeting before being called on to speak. When the resolution was introduced, the only board member to address it was Vice President Bridget Kaub, who reiterated that " last month this board did pass a resolution that was asking the state for some local control. I think we’re meeting somewhere in the middle ... We have passed a resolution. It isn’t this one, but it is something that goes somewhere in-between.” At last month’s meeting, board members unanimously voted to update the district’s 2021-22 safety plan as consistent with the latest guidance from the California Department of Public Health."
----- NATIONAL NEWS -----
White House launches Hispanic education initiative
President Joe Biden signed an executive order Monday intended to coordinate efforts across the federal government to improve educational and economic outcomes for Hispanics. U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona will serve as chairman of the White House Initiative on Advancing Educational Equity, Excellence, and Economic Opportunity for Hispanics; it will focus on policies that address “systemic causes” of challenges faced by students, improve their access to high-quality teachers, and address racial disparities in education funding, among other issues. Twenty-four cabinet departments or other agencies in the federal government will participate in a working group to collaborate through the initiative. “We must enable Hispanic and Latino students to reach their highest potential through our Nation’s schools and institutions of higher education,” the executive order says. “The Federal Government must also collaborate with Hispanic and Latino communities to ensure their long-term success.” Biden signed the executive order on the eve of National Hispanic Heritage Month, which runs from September 15th to October 15th.
FDA vaccine chief hopeful younger kids can get shots this year
The Food and Drug Administration’s vaccine chief said Friday the agency will rapidly evaluate COVID-19 vaccinations for younger children as soon as it gets the needed data. Dr. Peter Marks said he is “very, very hopeful” that vaccinations for five- to 11-year-olds will be underway by year’s end, and possibly sooner, with Pfizer expected to release study results at the end of the month. Moderna, which makes a second U.S. vaccine, told investors this week to expect its data on that age group by year’s end. Both companies also are testing their vaccines down to age six months, but those results will come later. Dr. Marks also urged parents and carers not to seek adult vaccines for their children, and to wait for studies recommending correct dosage sizes.
New group formed to improve education outcomes in Puerto Rico
U.S. Department of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona met with Puerto Rico Interim Secretary of Education Eliezer Ramos on Wednesday to discuss new actions to improve educational outcomes for students. Students in Puerto Rico have faced significant challenges in the aftermath of Hurricanes Irma and Maria, school closures, multiple earthquakes, and the COVID-19 pandemic. These compounding events have significantly impacted instruction for students on the island. A new organization, the Puerto Rico Education Sustainability (PRES) Team, is being formed to provide comprehensive support for Puerto Rico, including coordination with stakeholders that assists the Puerto Rico Department of Education (PRDE) and institutions of higher education. The team has started initial work collaborating with the PRDE, with a focus on three areas: financial responsibility; safe and healthy school buildings; and support in the use of American Rescue Plan (ARP) and other federal pandemic recovery funds.
Democrats poised to overhaul nation’s childcare
Spurred by the pandemic, Democrats are proposing a foundational shift in how the nation pays for childcare, placing responsibility largely on taxpayers rather than parents. “The pandemic has finally ripped the Band-Aid off and exposed just how economically fragile the system is, and how unstable it is, and how dependent essential work is on having high-quality childcare,” said Rhian Evans Allvin, chief executive of the National Association. for the Education of Young Children. Under the plan being negotiated in Congress, most families would pay no more than 7% of their income on childcare, with the rest subsidized by the federal government. The existing Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit would expand so parents and caregivers could claim up to $8,000 in day-care costs per child or adult dependent, capped at $16,000 per year per taxpayer or household. It would be fully refundable, so it’s paid out in full even if someone owes less than that amount in taxes. In addition, all three- and four-year-olds would have access to free pre-kindergarten, rather than the current state-by-state patchwork. “This is exponentially more than any investment we’ve ever seen in the history of the United States in childcare,” Allvin said.
Cardona's collaborative approach tested by ongoing pandemic
The continued disruption caused to America's schools by the pandemic is presenting a major challenge to Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, whose desire to maintain a collaborative tone with education officials around the country is at odds with a resistance to virus precautions in some hot-spot areas. “This is a ground game that we are talking about,” said Aaliyah Samuel, the deputy assistant secretary for state and local engagement at the U.S. Department of Education. “The conversation locally is very different from the conversation nationally.” Mr. Cardona has stressed hearing from “people on the ground,” dispatching teams to communities around the country to find out what their schools need, she said. Along the way, they’ve heard from school leaders who’ve lost beloved teachers and coaches to COVID-19, while also learning more about how schools are using an unprecedented infusion of $122bn in aid provided through the American Rescue Plan. Meanwhile, the spotlight on the health crisis also has drawn attention away from Mr. Cardona’s other priorities, including academic recovery efforts, school funding equity, and investment in programs like early education.
----- STATE NEWS -----
LAUSD board votes down school police officer proposal
A resolution that would have allowed school police officers to be placed back on campuses was rejected by the Los Angeles USD school board yesterday, seven months after the majority of board members voted to permanently move them off campuses in the first place. The resolution, sponsored by board members George McKenna and Scott Schmerelson, had been framed as a local control issue for school sites by giving principals and individual school communities the autonomy to decide if they wish to have an officer stationed at a middle or high school. The resolution would not have forced all secondary schools to bring officers back. Similar to the February vote, when McKenna and Schmerelson were the only ones on the seven-member board to vote against removing officers from campuses, they were the only two to endorse this week’s resolution. Board member Jackie Goldberg abstained from voting while the remaining four board members rejected the resolution. Since the resolution was voted down, the item cannot return for another vote for six months.
Legislature reaffirms quarantined students must be in independent study to be funded
Before heading home for the year Friday, state lawmakers adopted a measure intended to make it easier for districts to educate students during a COVID quarantine, along with a way for districts to get funding if they can prove they tried but failed to find the staff needed to meet their obligation. Late Thursday, the Legislature passed Assembly Bill 167, an amended budget “trailer bill” that includes amendments to rules governing independent study that lawmakers passed only two months ago as part of the state budget. The legislation expands independent study to include it as an option for parents who are apprehensive about sending their children to school during the pandemic and added rules to ensure that schools assigned academic work and tracked students’ performance as conditions for funding. For students in independent study for a total of 15 or more days, which would include students quarantined more than once, legislators also added minimum requirements for live instruction and, for some grades, daily contact between students and a supervising teacher. It clarifies certain areas, including on the use of Zoom and other platforms for remote learning, and allows districts to assign substitute teachers for up to 60 days at a time, to make scheduling easier.
----- DISTRICTS -----
Districts mandating vaccinations may face legal fight
School districts in California could face lawsuits if they require students ages 12 and older to be vaccinated against COVID-19 to attend classes in person, a mandate imposed last month in Los Angeles and being considered by the Oakland and West Contra Costa districts. State law already requires students in schools to be vaccinated against many other infectious diseases to attend class. Youths and their families can request exemptions for medical reasons, but a broader exemption based on “personal” objections to vaccines was eliminated by state law in 2015. Opponents to local vaccination mandates are likely to contend that school districts are exceeding their authority because the state regulates public education and has not yet required COVID shots. The state-vs.-local argument has been playing out in courts in Texas and Florida, where a number of districts are defying orders by the states’ governors banning schools from requiring masks. Opponents of the Los Angeles mandate have not gone to court yet, but have argued that the vaccines have not been fully proved and that children face relatively little danger from the coronavirus, noting that the schools do not require students to get flu shots.
Decline in COVID cases indicate safe L.A. school openings
The early weeks of fully opened Los Angeles County schools have coincided with declining pediatric coronavirus cases, the first indication campuses are generally operating safely without a troubling number of outbreaks. Over the last three weeks, coronavirus cases declined across all pediatric age groups by about 40%, according to L.A. County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer. “This is promising, since it’s occurring as students are going back to school,” she said during a briefing. “So we’re hopeful, with continued close attention to those school-based strategies that reduce the risk of exposure, we’ll continue to see these lower case rates across all age groups.” Citing the low number of coronavirus outbreaks in schools, she announced that schools in L.A. County will no longer be automatically required to send unvaccinated students home to quarantine for at least seven days after their last contact with an individual who tests positive.
Schools look to rebound after pandemic drives down test scores
Schools across the country are looking to bounce back from declines in recently released standardized test scores that underscored the challenges of remote learning during the first full school year of the pandemic. The size of the decreases varied across states, but in general included big drops in math compared to language arts. In states like Michigan and Tennessee, some of the sharpest declines were among minorities, students with disabilities and economically disadvantaged students. Experts are also sounding the alarm over plunging participation rates, saying that with many statewide tests canceled in 2020 and fewer students taking the annual exams last spring, educators might not know until around this time next year just how much progress was lost after the coronavirus disrupted in-school learning 18 months ago. “Non-participants tend to be more of the at-risk groups,” said Marianne Perie, an independent consultant who advises states on student assessments. “We're seeing minority, low-income and students with disabilities to be less likely to come into school and take the test, particularly in states where they weren't already in school.” Even as test scores have slipped, advocates and experts say educators’ efforts to adapt to remote learning helped mitigate the declines. “It wasn't a completely lost year,” said Abby Javurek, the vice president of future impact and growth at NWEA, a not-for-profit assessment creator formerly known as the Northwest Evaluation Association. “Our students did grow. They didn't grow as much as we would hope and we would expect in a normal year without all these crazy circumstances, but they did grow, and there is hope in that.” But she added that the scoring disparities underscore longstanding educational inequities among at-risk groups.
----- CLASSROOM -----
Push for Native American curriculum in schools makes gains
Connecticut, North Dakota and Oregon have all adopted measures requiring the teaching of Native American studies, with an emphasis on local tribes. A 2019 report from the National Congress of American Indians, which surveyed 35 states with federally recognized tribes, found nearly 90% of states said they had efforts underway to improve the quality and access to Native American curriculum. While a majority said it’s included in their schools, less than half said it was required and specific to tribal nations in their state. “We are seeing a focus on different races and issues,” said Aaron Payment, first vice president of the National Congress of American Indians and chairperson of the 44,000-member Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians in Michigan. The Connecticut legislation makes it mandatory for schools to teach Native American studies starting with the 2023-2024 school year. It passed despite concerns raised by teachers unions and state Education Commissioner Miguel Cardona. Cardona, who is now the U.S. education secretary, had said it is important to teach about Native Americans but he was wary of unfunded mandates for school districts that are still working to implement other courses lawmakers and the governor have required them to teach. In North Dakota, a bill became law this year that requires all elementary and secondary schools, public and private, to include Native American tribal history in their curriculum, with an emphasis on tribes within the state.
----- FINANCE -----
School officials cautious on using ARP funding for construction
A survey by the School Superintendents Association (AASA) reveals that school districts across the country don't plan to spend much of their American Rescue Plan funds on facilities renovations or new construction. Close to half of districts indicated they would spend no more than 10% of ARP funding on school facilities improvements, while 16% of districts said they would spend between a quarter to half of ARP funding on such improvements. About 25% of respondents indicated the 2024 spending deadline was an obstacle in using the ARP funds for infrastructure and construction. ARP funding alone is not enough to remedy the nation's school infrastructure, said Sasha Pudelski, AASA advocacy director, pointing to the Reopen and Rebuild America's Schools Act introduced by Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI). "We desperately need Congress to pass the Rebuild America's Schools Act, which would provide $100 billion in direct aid for new facilities projects," said Ms. Pudelski. "While ARP money can be utilized for school facilities, we are underinvesting roughly $80bn a year behind where we should be in school facilities, so we need a significant federal uptick in spending to get us on track."
New $82bn funding proposal for school buildings may not be sufficient
A new report argues that the $82bn in federal grant funding proposed this week by House Democrats to improve the nation's school buildings, along with a requirement for states to provide 10% in matching funds, will not be enough to fully address worsening facilities conditions. The latest plan in Congress to fund school facilities comes as federal Democratic lawmakers are moving forward with a broad package of nationwide infrastructure investments. In a statement Thursday, a collection of K-12 advocates known as the BASIC Coalition praised the plan, calling it “a momentous milestone for equitable advancements in education for our nation’s traditionally underserved communities.” In the meantime, the needs are ever-growing, according to the new “State of Our Schools” report from a coalition of organizations including the National Council on School Facilities, the 21st Century School Fund, and the International Well Building Institute. U.S. schools currently spend roughly $110bn per year on facilities. The report, following up on a similar 2016 study, asserts that schools are collectively investing $85bn less per year in building construction and improvements than would be needed to achieve full modernization. That number reflects a $25m increase, adjusted for inflation, over the dollar gap identified in the 2016 report.
----- TRANSPORTATION ----
More states consider calling in National Guard for school transportation
As school districts continue to grapple with the nationwide school bus driver shortage, several state officials are working to come up with solutions, including calling on the help of National Guard troops. On Monday, Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker summoned 250 members of the state’s National Guard to help with busing students to school. Following that announcement, New York Assemblyman Mike Lawler sent a letter to Gov. Kathy Hochul and the commissioners of the New York Department of Education, Department of Motor Vehicles, and the Department of Labor on Tuesday regarding the handling of the state's school bus driver shortage. In the letter, Lawler detailed the need for activating the National Guard to help drive buses. He also urged officials to provide a list of those on unemployment with appropriate licenses to drive school buses to school districts and school bus companies, in addition to allowing third-party testing to expedite the licensing process for new drivers. Meanwhile, in Ohio, Gov. Mike DeWine addressed on Wednesday the nation's driver shortage and how deploying the National Guard should be considered as an option. "We have deployed the National Guard throughout this pandemic," he said. "They've done all kinds of things, give tests, give shots, work in food banks, so it's certainly not out of consideration."
----- HEALTH & WELLBEING -----
Glasses lead to school improvement for short-sighted kids
A U.S. study has found that giving glasses to children who need them can result in "half a school year's worth of improvement". Lead author of the three-year Johns Hopkins University study, Dr Amanda Neitzel, said: "For students in the lowest quartile and students participating in special education, wearing glasses equated to four to six months of additional learning". Dr Megan Collins added: "The glasses offered the biggest benefit to the very kids who needed it most." However, academic improvements seen after one year were not sustained over two years, with researchers suggesting this could be due to children wearing their glasses less, or having broken or lost them.
Surgeon General backs Biden's vaccine mandate for schools
Surgeon General Vivek Murthy has rallied behind President Biden's new COVID-19 vaccination requirements, saying they are "an appropriate legal measure" in line with traditional safety requirements in schools and workplaces. The Biden administration's measure could affect up to 80m workers and is expected to be issued by the Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration within the coming weeks. Employers will be expected to ask all employees to either test weekly or be fully vaccinated against the virus — or face fines of $14,000 per violation.
Districts urged to provide social-emotional support for principals
The pandemic and social justice protests over the last 18 months were clarion calls that principals desperately need social-emotional learning (SEL), too, writes Denisa R. Superville in Education Week. Not just to support students and teachers, but for their own well-being and survival. In the early days of the crisis, the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence and the Council of School Supervisors and Administrators, the principals’ union for the New York City school system, surveyed school leaders in the city, then the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic. Among the emotions school leaders said they were experiencing: anxiety, stress, and frustration. Ms. Superville cites Julia Mahfouz, an assistant professor in the school of education and human development at the University of Colorado-Denver, who says knowledge and training in SEL competencies will help principals become better leaders, improve relationships schoolwide, and create stronger bonds with parents and communities.
Questions remain over COVID-19 school vaccine mandates
Vaccines, and the legality of mandating them, are once again at the center of the debate over public health measures. Opponents already have vowed legal challenges to Los Angeles USD’s vote to require COVID-19 vaccines for all students 12 and older who attend school in person. Some courts have already refused to block vaccine mandates for workers and for college students, ruling that challengers are unlikely to succeed on the merits of their claims under U.S. Supreme Court precedents. Education Week maps out the legal terrain on vaccines - from Boston, which in 1827 became the first U.S. city to require children entering its public schools to show evidence of vaccination for smallpox, to Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett's decision last month to refuse to step into arguments involving Indiana University’s mandate that all students must be vaccinated to attend school on campus this fall.
-----CHARTER SCHOOLS -----
California man gets prison for A3 Education charter scam
The co-owner of a network of online charter schools who was accused of stealing tens of millions of dollars in California education funds was sentenced Friday to four years in state prison. Jason Schrock, 46, of Southern California and his business partner, Sean McManus, 48, of Australia, also were ordered to pay $37.5m in fines, according to the San Diego County district attorney's office. The two ran A3 Education, which operated 19 online-only charter schools across California. Prosecutors said the company used a variety of schemes to inflate the schools' enrollment in order to obtain state education funds, including getting small school districts to authorize online charter schools; paying sports leagues, camps and other youth programs to collect student information and distorting school year calendars and moving children between the online campuses to earn maximum funding. The schools earned as much as $4,000 per student in state funding while providing "little to no education to most of the children enrolled," and some parents weren't even aware that their children were enrolled, the District Attorney's office said.
----- TECHNOLOGY -----
Smartwatches become the new big classroom distraction
Parents opting to send students to school with wearables like Verizon’s GizmoWatch, and Apple Watches, as a less-distracting alternative to cellphones, are instead creating a new, subtler classroom disruption. Jeanne McVerry, a reading specialist and education-technology coach in Teaneck, New Jersey, said her district doesn’t specifically forbid smartwatches in its tech-use policy but she has taken a hard line on them. She asks students to put them in their backpacks during class. She learned students were using them to arrange bathroom meetups with friends to hang out during class time. “Technology changes so rapidly and in ways we can’t anticipate that we don’t know how we’re going to police every new thing,” Ms. McVerry said. While the children’s smartwatch market is still relatively small, making up about 20% of overall smartwatch shipments, it’s a growing segment of personal tech for young people. According to Pew Research, 13% of teens own a smartwatch. Kids’ smartwatch unit sales grew 12% to about 12m in the first half of this year compared with the prior-year period, according to SuJeong Lim, a senior analyst at Counterpoint Research. She said she expects the kids’ smartwatch market to grow by double digits annually.
----- HIGHER EDUCATION -----
U.S. News & World Report releases its 2022 college rankings
U.S. News & World Report has released its 2022 Best Colleges rankings, featuring 1,466 colleges and universities that grant baccalaureate degrees. For the eleventh straight year, Princeton topped the National University list, followed by Columbia, Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, which all tied for second. Williams College heads up the National Liberal Arts Colleges list, and UCLA once again claimed first place among Top Public Universities.
Forbes US News and World Report
----- INTERNATIONAL -----
UNICEF calls for schools to reopen in pandemic-hit nations
UNICEF has urged education authorities to reopen schools as soon as possible in countries where millions of students are still not allowed to return to classrooms 18 months into the COVID-19 pandemic. Schools in around 17 countries remain fully closed, while those in 39 countries, including the Philippines, Bangladesh, Venezuela and Saudi Arabia, remain partially closed, according to a report released by UNICEF on Thursday. “The education crisis is still here, and with each passing day that classrooms remain dark, the devastation worsens,” said UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta Fore. The report said teachers should be prioritised for COVID-19 vaccines, after health workers and those most at risk, to protect them from community transmission. Students may be safer at home, but the availability of computers, mobile phones and internet, and the uneven quality of education, are among challenges they continue to face.
----- OTHER -----
NTA Life Insurance - An ABCFT Sponsor
Years ago ABCFT started a working relationship with National Teachers Associates Life Insurance Company. Throughout our partnership, NTA has been supportive of ABCFT activities by sponsorship and prizes for our various events. This organization specializes in providing insurance for educators across the nation. We have been provided both data and member testimonials about how pleased they have been with the NTA products and the opportunity to look at alternatives to the district insurance choice.
To All Members of the ABC Federation of Teachers,
National Teacher Associates (NTA) is committed in our efforts to helping educators through tough times. It’s what we do. After all…in our eyes, you are the heart and soul of our communities.
Protecting you and your families has been our goal for over 45 years. Despite the current global pandemic, we are not about to slow down now. We know that many of you have had our programs for years and sometimes forget the intricacies of how they work. NTA wants to help facilitate any possible claims for now and in the future. Fortunately, all claims and reviews can be done by phone and online. I personally want to offer my services to guide you in the right direction with your NTA benefits.
We also apologize for not being able to finish the open enrollment for those of you who wanted to get our protection. We are still able to help by extending our enrollment window for the near future. Again, this can be done over the phone, email, or online.
Please contact Leann Blaisdell at any time either by phone or email.
562-822-5004
Leann.Blaisdell@horacemann.
Click here to schedule an appointment
