Newspaper Page Text
rm% con
Let Teachers Teach at Home
REQUIRING THEM IN CLASSROOMS WILL ENDANGER THE COMMUNITY
SUDOKU Edited by Margie E. Burke
Difficulty: Easy
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Copyright 2020 by The Puzzle Syndicate
HOW TO SOLVE:
Each row must contain the numbers 1 to 9;
each column must contain the numbers 1 to 9;
and each set of 3 by 3 boxes must contain
the numbers 1 to 9.
The Weekly Crossword by Margie E. Burke
Copyright 2020 by The Puzzle Syndicate
ACROSS
1
Jazzy Fitzgerald
43 Dennis in the
12
Burn a bit
5
Needed a
2019 film
13
Category
massage
"Midway"
18
Rap sheet entry
10
Going rate
44 Wished, as a
22
Fishing gear
14
Yellow Brick
farewell
24
Potato, for one
Road traveler
45 Trinket
25
Beauty's beloved
15
2% alternative
47 Brought to an
26
Macaroni shape
16
Comply with
end
27
Informal, as of
17
Random
51 Rainless
language
inspections
52 Early bicycle
28
Kind of bean
19
High-five sound
54 Steady guy
29
Beauty parlor
20
Cellphone button
55 Cartoon art
30
Squash, for one
21
Lacking nothing
56 Implore
32
Held back, as
23
Pleasant tune
57 Harvard rival
breath
24
October handout
58 Biblical outcast
35
From the age of
25
Turn into
59 Grant basis
chivalry
28
Supporting
36
Unsophisticated
structure
DOWN
38
Radio feature
31
Run off together
1 Lioness of film
39
Circle
32
" in Toyland"
2 Loose ones sink
measurements
33
Gavel action
ships
41
Overpower
34
Up for the job
3 Ransack
42
Mitsubishi model
35
One you might
4 Range animal
44
Ecosystem
not want to meet
5 For some time
45
Bundle of joy
36
Circle overhead?
6 Pirate's box
46
Square feet, eg.
37
Fa follower
7 Take to the pawn
47
Toss, like a coin
38
Discourage
shop
48
and now
39
Chopper spinner
8 Caribou kin
49
Leg up
40
Like most
9 Military no-show
50
Monopoly card
arguments
10 Share top billing
53
OH to MA
42
Sing the blues
11 Wipe out
direction
Puzzle answers are available at www.flagpole.com/puzzles
By Various Authors news@flagpole.com
T he teachers and staff of the Clarke County School
District applaud the evolving policies related to school
reopening. We are grateful for the district’s decision to open
with remote learning and protect our students and their
families. We are grateful that those with child-care hard
ships have the flexibility to work remotely. We are grateful
that our colleagues who are medically at-risk are being
given the same option.
These compromises are admirable, but they are not equi
table, and they are not sufficient in protecting the CCSD
and larger Athens communities. Any CCSD staff member
who is required to enter school buildings is at risk and
increasing the potential for community spread and undue
pressure on an already fragile public health system. The
decision to require virtual teaching from the classroom is
unacceptable, dangerous and of serious public concern. We
ask that the CCSD administration remove the requirement
for all teachers and staff to work from school buildings
based on community transmission rates, emerging science
on infectious aerosols and the unnecessary nature of doing
so.
In both the recent town hall meeting and the board work
session, Director of Nursing Amy Roark explained that, by
all metrics, the state of Georgia currently has substantial
levels of community transmission.
Two strategies recommended
by the CDC for reducing the risk
of transmission in workplaces
during this level of spread are to
“implement flexible worksites” and
“deliver services remotely.” We do
not need to look far to see how
in-person pre-planning has gone in other districts. Teachers
in both Gwinnett and Barrow counties were required to
work on campus, and the consequences were immediate.
These metrics are clear—requiring teachers to return to the
classroom unnecessarily endangers the Athens community.
Additionally, recent studies indicate that the infectious
aerosols containing COVID-19 viruses can remain airborne
for extended periods of time. Experts recommend avoiding
shared indoor spaces whenever possible. Shared HVAC and
poorly ventilated spaces are a major factor in the spread of
the virus, and surface cleaning and distancing will not pro
vide enough protection. Teachers and staff will have to walk
along shared hallways and use the same restrooms, kitch
ens, copy rooms, resources and doorknobs. Collaborative
teachers share classrooms. Counselors, instructional
coaches and staff work in small interconnected office
suites and are in contact with other staff constantly. While
our custodians will work tirelessly to clean surfaces, they
cannot clean the air we are sharing. This mandate adds to
their workload and increases their risk and the risk to their
families. While CCSD’s facilities and maintenance staff have
been working on our HVAC systems, it was confirmed in
this week’s town hall session that our air quality remains
untested and inconsistent across the district. Given the
state of our ventilation systems and shared spaces, teachers
should continue to wear their masks even in the isolation
of their own classrooms. It is highly ineffective to teach
students synchronously, record videos for asynchronous
delivery, or conduct meetings while wearing a mask. Masks
muffle voices and conceal facial expressions creating barri
ers to connection and understanding. To that end, it would
be preferable for us to work from home so that we can
engage in meetings and content creation with our masks
off. Teaching virtually in masks negates any rationale
requiring teachers to work from school buildings. It is sim
ply not necessary and a danger to the larger community.
In some cases, teachers or staff may need to be in their
buildings, and we wholeheartedly believe that we must take
explicit action to preserve the safety of staff who cannot
do their work from home. Our custodial and nutrition staff
will be much safer with fewer people in their buildings.
Also, our library media specialists and student support
technicians are currently working onsite to get ready for
device distribution. Finally, some teachers and staff will
need to be in their buildings for access to materials, tech
nology, phones or internet connectivity. Why is CCSD
willing to risk the lives and health of our staff, custodians,
teachers, and maintenance workers by requiring all to be
present regardless of need? If CCSD truly wants what is
best for our students, why is the safety of all employees
working to support them not the first priority? And why
put their families and community at a higher risk?
Outside of education, professionals all over the nation
are trusted to work remotely. Private companies large and
small, government offices, law firms and even state edu
cational agencies have announced that their employees
will remain remote whenever possible for the foreseeable
future. What rationale and evidence supports the decision
to bring teachers into buildings for virtual instruction?
If it is an accountability issue, then should that not be
addressed directly with the individual teachers who had an
issue with working remotely previously?
We respectfully ask that CCSD allow all teachers and
staff who are able to work remotely to continue doing so
with access to their buildings as needed. When community
transmission statistics indicate
that our district is ready to transi
tion to the phased plan for in-per-
son instruction, the teachers and
staff needed for each phase could
begin transitioning into buildings
as well. Shouldn’t our school sys
tem model socially responsible
behaviors? Why is CCSD willing to further burden our com
munity and medical infrastructure by asking all teachers
to return to campus while still teaching virtually? How is
asking teachers to report to their classrooms a risk worth
taking? Why would teaching online from a classroom be
pedagogically better than teaching online from a home
office space?
It is hard to see any benefits of the current arrangement
that will outweigh the risks. Forcing teachers to work in an
unsafe environment for accountability purposes speaks to
a lack of respect for the teachers of CCSD as professionals.
We know what we need to do our jobs, and, as experienced
professionals, we should be trusted to make decisions that
positively impact not only our effectiveness as teachers but
also our health and safety and that of the greater Athens
community. We respectfully ask that you respond to these
issues of public concern. ©
Brian Ash, Melissa Authement, Michelle Beatty, Felix Bell,
Jennifer Biddle, Shana Biggs, Kelli Bivins, Anna Bray, Abby
Brink, Grace Brownlee Crumpton, Jill Buchanan-Louney,
Kimberly Carmack, Lindsay Coleman-Taylor, Christian
Cordon, Emily Costley, Scotty Diesch, Nestor Domingo,
Marina Doneda, Kathy Erickson, Marie Eskridge, Amy
Evans, Jesse Evans, Aaron M. Farnham, Tina Favors,
Natalia Ferrando, Jennifer Fishburn, Rebecca Floyd, Rita
Foretich, Heather Garland, Logan Garrett, Lori Garrett-
Hatfield, Claude Gonzalez, Christine Graziano, Geneva
Hinkle, Erin Horton, Tanya Hudson, Kalli James-Wyrick,
Katie Johnson, Laura Lee Johnson, Ryan Johnson,
Peg Johnson, Courtney Jones, Cyndi Kelly, Adrienne
Kitchens, Susan Lane, Dave Martin, Lisa Mason, Karen
McDonald, Meghan McNeeley, Mary Claire Mixon, Jamie
Momeye, Ashley Na, Brendan Nordgren, Sarah Parido,
Tina Pattersson, Beth Pifer-Mills, Michelle Pisarik, Melanie
Powers, Amanda Price, Cori Pringle, Andy Plemmons, David
Ragsdale, Annie Reeves Bradberry, Melissa Rowland, Evelyn
Rushing, Ella Salt, Catherine Shinholser, Elliot Slane, Kasey
Solis, G. Stickney, Chris Sugiuchi, Jason Taylor, Jennifer
Tesler Boyd, Shannon Thompson, Ashli Walker, Roenessa
Witcher, Lauren Wood, Chris Woodward
Teachers in both Gwinnett
and Barrow counties were
required to work on campus, and
the consequences were immediate.
AUGUST 19, 2020 | FLAGPOLE.COM 17