How can we force our school to reopen?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you travel around the country, you realize how anomalous DC is. In most of the country, in red states and in blue states, school is back in session at least part time. The number of places where schools are completely closed like in DC is rapidly shrinking. It's just some big cities where teachers unions are powerful where schools are still closed.

As far as I know, the entire state of CA is closed. We have family and friends in Northern and Southern CA and not one of them is doing anything but virtual.

Nope. Many school districts in California and open and many more are getting ready to open. Even LA is starting to open.

https://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2020/10/06/dr-mark-ghaly-california-school-openings-covid-19-no-link-so-far/

The coronavirus situation in California is much worse than it is in DC. Their positivity rate is more than twice as high as ours.

[Anonymous]

Wow. This is going to break the public schools for the upper middle class.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you travel around the country, you realize how anomalous DC is. In most of the country, in red states and in blue states, school is back in session at least part time. The number of places where schools are completely closed like in DC is rapidly shrinking. It's just some big cities where teachers unions are powerful where schools are still closed.

In most of the country Covid cases and hospitalizations are rising at breakneck speed. Try another argument.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wow. This is going to break the public schools for the upper middle class.

Taxes and funding are synchronous - so no it won't. If anything you're reducing class sizes for the 2020-2021 and future school years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If it is teachers union politics why are almost all charters closed?

Charters were some of the first to dip their toes into reopening. Some charters (Sojourner) are open. My guess is that charters will reopen starting in November.

Charters aren't leading the way on this. I am hopeful that adjacent districts will open hybrid in January and then DC will feel a lot of pressure to as well and perhaps we'll go back in February. Charters will follow dcps as they always do.

Yup. Charters aren't taking any risks right now. Truth school isn't representative because it's tiny!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What I find maddening is that the Mayor and the DCPS administrators can be so slack and so incompetent and so seemingly unconcerned, and we’re just stuck with the pathetic results.

We are considering moving out of DC for the first time ever.

Okay?

Good luck finding a school system in America that isn't shut down every other week because of Covid. Maybe a two - three hour trafficless drive in a super rural community would be your best bet. But don't get sick out there! The hospitals are even further away.

[Anonymous]

We have family elsewhere whose kids have been in school every day for going on two months now. It's turned out to not be a big deal.

In DC, the teachers union won't let schools open until everyone is vaccinated, which probably won't happen until the end of next year (in the past couple days, two major vaccine trials have been halted because of safety concerns).

Schools in DC are going to end up being closed for more than a year longer than in other parts of the country. Your public school child is probably going to be in school for a full year less than a child of the same age living somewhere else in the country.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is filing a lawsuit our only option? Looking for options, ideas.

At this rate, DC is going to be the last place in America to reopen schools even as we have among the smallest coronavirus caseloads in the country.

Back to OPs original question, I too would like to know what realistic options are. I feel so helpless. Voting Bowser out
is not a solution for the immediate future. What are the options for parents to make their voices heard in a unified manner?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is filing a lawsuit our only option? Looking for options, ideas.

At this rate, DC is going to be the last place in America to reopen schools even as we have among the smallest coronavirus caseloads in the country.

Back to OPs original question, I too would like to know what realistic options are. I feel so helpless. Voting Bowser out
is not a solution for the immediate future. What are the options for parents to make their voices heard in a unified manner?

You can try an in-person march or protest but since none of the parents seemed willing to show up and show their faces for something like this in this area - I doubt it'll work.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is filing a lawsuit our only option? Looking for options, ideas.

At this rate, DC is going to be the last place in America to reopen schools even as we have among the smallest coronavirus caseloads in the country.

Back to OPs original question, I too would like to know what realistic options are. I feel so helpless. Voting Bowser out
is not a solution for the immediate future. What are the options for parents to make their voices heard in a unified manner?

It's very demoralizing. It's like our teachers and our elected officials are conspiring against our children.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't think a lawsuit is the way to go. Something like an open letter to Bowser and the Council that is published in the Post and online that is signed by 10 thousand families with students enrolled in that says - You must start prioritizing schools and education. Stop fooling around with bars and indoor dining and concerts. Do the work necessary and dedicate the funding necessary to meet the needs of our students.

I wish the editorial board of the Post would do that on their own.

I would not include a list of demands like the WTU keeps putting out there because it's very divisive and not productive.

The WTU's list of demands is designed to be impossible to meet so schools will stay closed. The last thing WTU wants is for schools to reopen.

They don’t need WTU’s permission to reopen. They may want their support but schools can open with or without union support. Teachers legally can’t strike so they would have to come back, take leave, or quit. So again, there’s the problem—staff entitled to make their own decisions using their legal provided leave.

Teachers need approval to take annual leave unless they're on FMLA, right? Even in regular times, teachers can't just say they're going on vacation for 3 weeks during the school year? How does their sick leave work? Do they need to provide medical documentation after x amount of days?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is filing a lawsuit our only option? Looking for options, ideas.

At this rate, DC is going to be the last place in America to reopen schools even as we have among the smallest coronavirus caseloads in the country.

Back to OPs original question, I too would like to know what realistic options are. I feel so helpless. Voting Bowser out
is not a solution for the immediate future. What are the options for parents to make their voices heard in a unified manner?

It's very demoralizing. It's like our teachers and our elected officials are conspiring against our children.

Not really. It's like we live in a capitalist society run by corporations.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is filing a lawsuit our only option? Looking for options, ideas.

At this rate, DC is going to be the last place in America to reopen schools even as we have among the smallest coronavirus caseloads in the country.

Back to OPs original question, I too would like to know what realistic options are. I feel so helpless. Voting Bowser out
is not a solution for the immediate future. What are the options for parents to make their voices heard in a unified manner?

It's very demoralizing. It's like our teachers and our elected officials are conspiring against our children.

+1. At this rate I don’t think we’ll be back, even hybrid, by Fall 2021.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What I find maddening is that the Mayor and the DCPS administrators can be so slack and so incompetent and so seemingly unconcerned, and we’re just stuck with the pathetic results.

We are considering moving out of DC for the first time ever.

Okay?

Good luck finding a school system in America that isn't shut down every other week because of Covid. Maybe a two - three hour trafficless drive in a super rural community would be your best bet. But don't get sick out there! The hospitals are even further away.

Liar. Just picking up kids from IN PERSON school. Week 8 now, no outbreaks.

In a wealthy Midwest suburb.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is filing a lawsuit our only option? Looking for options, ideas.

At this rate, DC is going to be the last place in America to reopen schools even as we have among the smallest coronavirus caseloads in the country.

Back to OPs original question, I too would like to know what realistic options are. I feel so helpless. Voting Bowser out
is not a solution for the immediate future. What are the options for parents to make their voices heard in a unified manner?

Maybe someone could create an online petition and circulate it? I'd sign it.