Thread by @CTULocal1

CPS plans to close all schools on Nov. 12, giving parents and guardians an opportunity to get their children vaccinated.

We welcome the district acknowledging the urgent need for parents and families to vaccinate their children, and providing time and opportunity to do so.

We're all exhausted by daily challenges to safety and security confronted in this pandemic. CPS’ decision to close schools and give all school staff paid time off is welcome relief from the stress of trying to protect and educate students without resources to address their needs.

But we cannot stop here. Students are crying out for support in every way possible. Nothing during a pandemic is normal, but let’s be clear: Nothing before the pandemic was normal.

A school district that finds difficulty in running schools pre-pandemic, will truly struggle during a global health crisis.

And that's exactly what happened.

Teachers, PSRPS, clinicians, counselors, tech coordinators, librarians, cafeteria workers, security, social workers, case managers and everyone in school buildings are moving mountains and doing the very best they can in difficult times. So are our students and their families.

And we will continue to push CPS to provide robust outreach, school-based vaccinations during flexible hours, and collaboration with families on engagement and incentives. Give children socio-emotional support, healing spaces, and strong athletic, music and arts programs.

The mayor and her Dept of Public Health must also do more than the status quo in providing ease of access to vaccinations, which still has our 12-17 year-old student population vaccination rate under 50%. Reduce the stress on families trying to find shots. ctulocal1.org/posts/cps-aver…

The more that CPS, in partnership with our union, addresses the totality of safety and wellness, the more hope we provide our students, and their families and communities.