Today the Maryland State Education Association, the Baltimore Teachers Union, and the Maryland PTA issued a joint call for the fall semester of the upcoming school year to be virtual. The three groups sent a letter to Gov. Larry Hogan and State School Superintendent Karen Salmon encouraging them to support this course of action to protect the health and safety of Maryland students, educators, and families.
“We must rise above politics and focus on the reality and complexities of safely reopening schools,” the letter reads. “If we open our schools too quickly and without adequate safety precautions, the result will be that some educators, students, and their family members will contract the coronavirus. Some will recover, some will face debilitating health consequences or healthcare bills that they cannot pay, and some will die. These are stubborn facts. And they are costs and consequences that we must refuse to accept. A perfect solution does not exist. A safe one does.”
Below (and here) is a copy of the letter sent to Governor Hogan and Superintendent Salmon.
Currently all districts across Maryland are evaluating the best way to safely re-open schools in the fall. Anne Arundel County Public Schools is expected to present their plan by the end of July.
Below is a recording of a press conference this afternoon held by MSEA. The first speaker is Cheryl Bost (President of MSEA), the second speaker is Diamonte Brown (Baltimore Teachers Union), and the third speaker is Tonya Sweat (Maryland PTA). Moderator is Adam Mendelson (Director of Communications for MSEA)
