The Maui News

A day after Gov. David Ige publicly supported opening public schools Aug. 4, the teachers union called Tuesday for a delay in bringing students back to campus, citing safety concerns and issues with distance learning alternatives.

“We are two weeks away from school buildings reopening to students, yet critical questions remain unanswered. Educators are still confused and unclear on the necessary measures and steps needed to reduce the risk of COVID-19 spread in our schools,” said Corey Rosenlee, president of the Hawaii State Teachers Association, in a news release.

Teachers are scheduled to report to campus July 29 with the HSTA saying it “has no confidence that our school buildings and classrooms are ready for students to open in a manner that minimizes the risk of COVID-19 spreading,” the union said.

Rosenlee added that “schools are woefully underprepared to deliver a distance learning program should a school be shut down” by the Health Department due to the virus.

The HSTA “implores” the state and the Board of Education to delay the opening of school campuses to students to give the DOE and DOH more time to implement health and safety protocols and to prepare teachers for online teaching.

“The coronavirus has created an ever-changing situation within our communities, and significant stress and fear for our students, parents and guardians, as well as all school staff,” the HSTA said. “While the HSTA believes in the importance of ensuring students are provided instructional services in school year 2020-21, it should not be at the cost of a safe educational environment.”

The state Board of Education will hold a virtual meeting at 1:30 p.m. Thursday.

The HSTA said that it has not received written guidance from the Health Department on reopening schools and that only a “small fraction of teachers” participated in voluntary professional virtual learning development.

They say that E-School is a supplementary program for grades 6 to 12 and not designed or approved to replace curriculum at schools. The department has provided no guidance for kindergarten-to-5th-grade students’ access to 100 percent distance learning options, the HSTA said.

The HSTA said teachers are “most at risk” when schools open because they are in close contact with potentially hundreds of children for multiple hours in a given day.

“The health and safety of our keiki and the staff of our public schools must be paramount in any decision-making,” Rosenlee said. “We must take every precaution before students are brought back on campus. This is a process we cannot afford to rush.”

On Monday, Ige appeared at a news conference with state Epidemiologist Dr. Sarah Park, Board of Education Chairwoman Catherine Payne and state schools Superintendent Christina Kishimoto. He said that his decision to hold off the virus pretesting option for travelers to Hawaii until Sept. 1 opened up an opportunity for restarting schools.

“We do not want to reopen our schools and receive more travelers simultaneously,” Ige said. “A phased approach will help ensure a safe return for our students and minimize other factors that could lead to the spread of COVID-19 that we have been able to carefully manage so far.”

School officials said they have developed a COVID-19 safety protocol, in consultation with the state Department of Health, and noted parental concerns about the social emotional well-being of their children being out of school.

They said that 46 in-person instructional days were lost last school year and that delays in starting school will increase the learning gaps.