Petition to Reconsider In-Person School Re-Opening

Date: August 3, 2020

To:     

• Honorable Ned Lamont, Governor of Connecticut
• Honorable Justin Elicker, Mayor for the City of New Haven
• Dr. Eileen Tracey, Superintendent, New Haven Public Schools

From: New Haven Racial Equity 4 Youth

We, the New Haven Racial Equity 4 Youth, oppose the physical re-opening of New Haven Public schools before it is safe to do so. As a matter of urgency please re-consider school re-opening to full capacity provided the following public health concerns:

• The plan does not account for increasing cases of COVID-19 among children that occurring nationally with spikes in mortalities among children and young people
• While data suggests that overall risks to children is less than in older or more vulnerable populations, school re-openings in districts disproportionately affected by COVID-19 threaten further increases to community-level spread. This will exaggerate COVID-19 morbidities and mortalities in African American/ Black and Latino communities New Haven.
• In many districts across the state, children reside in multi-generational housing; an early return to school poses a detrimental health threat to already vulnerable family members, and caretakers of students, which presents an added burden to families.
• Underfunded districts which are already over-crowded and under-resourced will not have the capacity to implement social distancing guidelines due to teacher shortages and limited availability of classroom or other space to re-assign students in an attempt to implement revised student-teacher ratios.
• Low-income families may not have fiscal means to supply students with appropriate PPE as required for children for in-person school gatherings and transportation to and from school.

Alternatively, we are requesting that the State of Connecticut support actions that:

• Offer alternatives which prioritize academic rigor and student academic success without jeopardizing the health and safety of students, families, and the greater community. Accordingly, we [insert name of coalition], seek school re-opening plans that offer:
• Integrate creative learning technologies to advance student achievement including access to laptops and other technology to all students as well as access to free Wi-Fi and or hotspots at home as well as in public areas which the broader community can access from outside of public buildings.
• Implement academic and social supports including tutoring, wellness checks, etc. that can be offered to students remotely or safely in-person such as in a small groups or one-on-one and in outdoor spaces, when safe, or in mobile sites that are well maintained and sterilized.
• Limit in-person meetings to a minimal appropriate standard (less than three days a week for a minimum amount of hours) to at-risk groups such as limited English proficient speakers, students with specific learning deficiencies; or children of essential workers such as health providers; or parents and families who do not have other means to assist student learning at home.
• Provide adequate out-of-school (in-home) support for special needs students
• Leverage for families to opt-out of in-person attendance due to personal and familial risks due to pre-existing health conditions.
• Regularly inform parents/families, teachers, and staff,  via email, updates of all COVID-19 cases traced to school building(s)
• Provide basic level technology and subject area training to families to support at home student learning.
• Stagger in-person in-school attendance to lower the maximum capacity of students and adults in the building at one time to closely monitor compliance
• Provide free meals to families and students; counseling services to students and families; work closely with social services for the City of New Haven to appropriately recommend families for housing, food, health, and medical assistance.
• Offer grief counseling for those impacted by COVID-19
• Offer adequate professional development for high quality distance learning for teachers