September 22, 2020
Good Evening Shaker Heights Parents, Teachers, Students, Staff and Community:
Thank you for joining us tonight for our work session. During our meeting tonight, Dr. Glasner and his team will present updated plans for school reopening. We are grateful for your participation in this virtual meeting and for all the thoughts and input you have provided prior to tonight.
This pandemic has been challenging, ever changing, and painfully disruptive to our normal lives. However, throughout the challenge of the last six months, there have been members of the Shaker Schools staff who have ensured that the buildings remained clean and functioning and have reorganized classrooms to ensure appropriate social distancing in case of a return to classes, among other responsibilities. These workers perform a variety of critical duties necessary for essential infrastructure operations. We would like to recognize these essential staff and personnel who have willingly continued to perform their vital duties.
Like the many essential healthcare workers who serve as the foundation for clinical care, teachers are the backbone of our country’s education system. And Shaker teachers are certainly the backbone of Shaker Schools. So it is no surprise that teachers are designated as “essential employees” whose duties are eminently necessary for our children’s success.
Since the closure of school buildings in March, the District has continually conducted virtual meetings with members of the community, parents, teachers, union leaders and administrators to establish a process to engage our students effectively in virtual learning. At the end of the school year and in accordance with a recommendation by the American Academy of Pediatrics, the District focused on returning our children safely to in-person learning, not only for academic enrichment but also for needed socialization. During this time, there was active engagement and collaboration with Dr. Glasner and the Shaker Heights Teachers Association (SHTA) to ensure that Shaker teachers were abreast of continuing dynamic changes in the process.
In all cases, the Administration has been consistent in using the latest scientific and clinically relevant data to guide all decision making with regards to COVID-19. Dr. Glasner’s team proposed a hybrid model for reopening based on Cuyahoga County COVID-19 infection numbers and a transitioning from Red to Orange color ratings, the second lowest rating. The County’s rating stayed at Red, however, as we moved toward the beginning of the school year, so opening was delayed until after the first quarter. Cuyahoga County moved from Red to Orange on Aug 21, 2020, and currently is trending towards Yellow, the lowest color rating. Since the beginning of the pandemic, the Administration has worked diligently to remain transparent, to publicly share ideations and strategies based on evidence, and to follow the guidelines of the CCBH, the CDC and the legislature. These strategies have consistently been shared with input from the President of the SHTA, and other union presidents, to ensure engagement with negotiating units.
Some faculty and students may not be able to participate in in-person teaching for health reasons, while some students’ needs necessitate having strong in-person support. In each case, it is our responsibility to support the entire district. From continuous, seven-days-a-week meal delivery early in the pandemic, quick provision of laptops and hotspots to students, provision of appropriate personal protective equipment, the development of a dashboard to establishing relationships with the CCBH for potential contract tracing, the Administration is working with your support to enhance your child’s education.
During this time of heightened anxiety and uncertainty, legitimate questions regarding efforts to make our schools as safe as possible for in-person return have sometimes been couched in an inaccurate and divisive context. This is unfortunate. However, this Board has every confidence our collective bargaining units and administration will work through any concerns in time to return to our buildings according to the time table set by Dr. Glasner last week.
Sincerely,
Shaker Heights Board of Education