At this time, after being in school since October 14, staff members across the district have become increasingly alarmed at the momentum of Covid growth across the country, our state and our district. We are truly concerned with the way in which the district has so far handled this situation. We are writing to share our concerns as stakeholders on the front lines in our schools, associated buildings and all district functions related to Deer Valley Schools.. 

Our points of concern are as follows:

Ignoring Health Benchmarks:

Over the summer the state shared the benchmarks necessary for a safe return to school. Those benchmarks were ignored, the levels needed for hybrid instruction were not met and Deer Valley began sending students and staff back to school with no reduction of class sizes. In fact, staffing changes have led to increased class sizes in several instances. There is no room to safely distance students in many classrooms across the district.  Now we are at a crossroad with numbers of Covid cases sharply on the rise. Our district still has no plan in place to make sure that our schools are safe. To make things worse, the state changed the benchmarks last week, with no input from the educators actually in classrooms. Input was necessary to make a good decision from those that are in the schools daily, so now, we are even more concerned. 

School Cleanliness and Sanitation:

The safety and cleaning protocols within our schools are not being met and implemented. Cleaning/sanitizing of desks is not being done on a daily basis. Regular and communal touch points such as door handles, bathrooms and water filling stations are not being cleaned throughout the course of the day and usually not even at the end of the day. Deep cleaning is not truly being done when positive cases have shown up in classrooms. The fact that many schools are not even able to fully staff their custodial positions, is of great concern, especially considering that if general cleaning is not happening, how can the sanitizing be happening? This is unsafe for employees and students. 

Social Distancing Measures:

Safety protocols, including social distancing, lunchroom procedures and classroom procedures have become very lax on many campuses. There is no one enforcing them.  In cafeterias, for example, masking tape and putting 3 kids at a table, is not a safety measure. We know they will turn and talk with masks off.  How are we supposed to feel safe at work if there are no safe-guards being required? 

Positive Case Communication:

There are also many issues with reporting cases on campuses and informing staff members who may have been exposed. How can it be considered appropriate practice to not inform special area teachers of possible exposures and positive cases?  These teachers see every student on campus and should be constantly informed. Not to mention, the parent of every student in a classroom should be informed if there is a case in that room.  We inform parents regarding lice and strep and this is much more serious, yet parents are not being informed.  It is this groups’ opinion that there is a lack of reporting happening district wide, and it is putting everyone at risk. This group feels disrespected and devalued by the lack of concern for our safety and our students’ safety, not to mention the lack of transparency.  

Alone, each of these issues put our staff and students at risk. When combined, they make our schools, associated buildings and school functions unsafe. If we can’t maintain a constant custodial staffing, safety protocols and proper sanitizing, how is it that we can safely allow students and staff to be safe in our school buildings? 

Additionally, another concern that directly correlates to this Covid crisis is the workload of our educators.  Many, many, teachers are feeling overwhelmed, overworked, and under appreciated (words don’t really mean much at this point). There are far too many expectations being put on our plates right now. Teaching both online via Zoom and in person simultaneously is very stressful. When students have to quarantine, teachers have less than 24 hours notice to provide adequate, modified instructional materials  Include in that stress, creating lessons that connect to lessons on Canvas, PLC meetings, classroom observations and SLO goals that need to be completed. Teachers are always going to give everything they have to their students because that is what we always do, but at some point, there is no more to give, and we will instead, give up.  Something has to be done to lessen the load on our staff, so they can give their very best to their students each and every day. 

Deer Valley Unified School District is not JUST a business. The people that make up our district are important members of our community. Each and every one should be valued. Their safety and well-being should be of utmost importance during this unprecedented pandemic. 

We are requesting district leadership and our board members give us the guarantee that we will continue to follow the benchmarks that were originally set up by ADHS when the plan to return to campus was agreed upon. This would require that we go back to online learning when two Covid benchmarks turn red for two weeks (Below 7% positivity and 100 out of 100,000 infection rate). With this in mind, and to help with transparency, we believe that the district dashboard needs to be updated daily and include a cumulative total column for each school. Daily cleaning of communal touch points must take place across campuses and that unfulfilled custodial positions must be filled immediately to ensure that necessary cleaning is able to be completed. It is imperative that all district employees enforce and model social distancing at all times and that administration will be involved when this is not being done. Last, we are asking the district to ease the requirements on workloads for teachers. Teaching during this health crisis has been stressful in every aspect. The added stressors of PLC meetings, SLO goals and observations, are a few of the areas that need to be visited and amended in a way that allows teachers a chance to spend more time on self care and family time. This would go a long way in keeping teachers in Deer Valley classrooms and minimize the need for substitutes. 

With this in mind, the undersigned unanimously agree that it is paramount for our district to put Deer Valley students, employees and each of their families first.