New Henrico group advocating for carefully measured return to school

A new group, organized completely through a Facebook page, is “working to ensure the safety of all teachers, staff, and students in returning to Henrico County Public Schools in the fall,” according to its press release.

The group, which calls itself “HCPS Back to School Safely,” is composed of “Henrico County Public School Employees, parents, and community stakeholders,” according to its release, and currently has 1,800 members on Facebook.

HCPS Back to School Safely plans to begin its advocacy at the July 14 Henrico School Board town hall meeting at Glen Allen High School by having a car rally — members holding signs in their cars in the parking lot — and speakers at the meeting. The group also plans to send a petition to members of the school board and to HCPS Superintendent Amy Cashwell requesting that the board not vote about its reopening plans “until staff voices and concerns are heard and met in a full, equitable public plan outlining all details and concerns.”

“I think we would feel comfortable to see an actual plan and the details of that plan in place before the board takes a vote on any plans,” group administrator Ryan Burgess told the Citizen.

The letter, which serves as a petition, that members have drafted expresses concerns through questions about school safety, students and staff. It also expresses concerns about an increase in the number of children testing positive for COVID-19 as summer camps, daycares, and schools reopen and the resulting increased exposure of faculty and staff. And, it mentions how disparities in the impact of COVID-19 could affect HCPS families.

“As you are already aware, Black and Brown families are the most impacted by COVID-19,” it reads. “Knowing that many HCPS schools, especially in the East End, serve primarily students of color we feel by opening up without a comprehensive and well thought out plan that we are risking the safety of our families, especially those that might not be able to afford or receive any type of healthcare services. This supports systems based on racism and systemic oppression. We need to make sure we are protecting our most vulnerable students in all parts of Henrico.”

The group's formation comes not long after another local group on the other side of the debate – Choices for Virginia Schools – announced a fundraising effort to hire legal counsel in an effort to advocate for a full-time return to in-person learning statewide. Another Facebook group called Back to School Virginia has nearly 21,000 members statewide, most who support the idea of full-time in-person learning beginning this fall.

Safety first, group says

But the 'Back to School Safely' group's position is that while education can be made up in time, a life cannot. It's urging the Henrico School Board not to take chances with the health of students, teachers or staff members.

“We want to remind the School Board members and the Superintendent that nowhere in HCPS contracts does it say that taking jobs in public education would involve risk of death – of ourselves or the family members we live with,” the letter reads. “There are no written policies in place to protect teachers and staff from risk of infection.”

An equitable plan would be one following the group’s requested precautions, Burgess said; members of the group have indicated that a mask mandate for faculty, staff and students is non-negotiable, with exceptions for people with health reasons that would prevent them from wearing one. Some teachers in the group also are advocating for a virtual option, particularly for teachers who do not feel safe enough to come back or who are high-risk or have high-risk family members, she said.

Burgess, a Highland Springs High School teacher who has taught in Henrico schools for almost 17 years, said that the group views itself as working with the HCPS School Board.

“We are doing our best to support the board, the superintendent, our leadership, in making the best decisions for the safety of both students and staff,” she said. “We don’t see ourselves as working against the board and leadership — we see ourselves as supporting the board and leadership in planning and in trying to make sure everybody’s voices are heard and concerns are heard.”

The group has compiled a list of preventative measures for which it is advocating, which include:

• a mask mandate for students and staff;
• paid sick leave for COVID-19 related illness of staff and family members beyond what is already provided;
• cleaning supplies, hand sanitizer, PPE, and handwashing stations provided for students, staff, and faculty;
• HEPA-grade filters for ventilation systems in all schools;
• no consideration of requiring teachers to teach in person and virtually at the same time;
• a commitment from parents not to send their children to school sick;
• free COVID-19 testing for faculty/staff and their families;
• community partners for more childcare support;
• testing, particularly for underrepresented and underserved areas of the county, to protect underserved student and family populations;
• virtual one-to-one instruction for students who have IEPs [individualized educational programs];
• a reduction in class sizes;
• increased state funding for COVID-19 relief efforts in K-12 education.

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