Meeting Time: March 24, 2021 at 4:00pm PDT
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Agenda Item

L.-1 21-0623 Public Comments on All Agenda Items - March 24, 2021.

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    OUSD Parent over 3 years ago

    CDC, Alameda County, the White House are all saying - you can do this safely, and you need to do this for the children. There was an entire summit today talking about how so many others have done it safely and can do it. So many people thank you for opening the schools at all, but we have to now look at how to serve the kids with the education and the time that they deserve. There is no reason with the funding in hand that kids who need and want should not have access to 5 days of school a week. Funding can also be used for those who need to stay remote. OUSD Board and staff should take the lead on this like so many other school district officials have done. please follow the CDC, Alameda County, California guidance.

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    OUSD Parent over 3 years ago

    Please follow the new CDC and Alameda county guidelines of 3' distancing to allow students to come back 5 days a week NOW as well as in the fall. You need to commit to full time in-person in the fall.

    Also, please vote yes on reparations for black students.

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    JUDY GOODMAN over 3 years ago

    Hi, i would really like our kids to return to in person school! We have had very little communication from teachers and the principal this year. Distance ed has been that much harder. Especially when mostly you get recorded videos on Seesaw and then find out your kid has been missing assignments on his report card! (no offer for any kind of parent teacher conferences). So beyond the discussion of hybrid/in person, there is a huge lack of communication and support from both sides- both parents and teachers. We need to get the kids back in school and the teachers more engaged with both our kids learning and communicating with parents.

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    Brandon Wall over 3 years ago

    Please make an abundantly clear and public statement to families in Oakland that schools will reopen full-time in the fall unless there is new public health guidance at that point that prevents it.

    Schools are essential. Hybrid should only be described as a backup plan that is unlikely to be needed. Families that still want distance learning in the fall should be served in a way that doesn’t impede OUSD’s ability to provide full-time in-person learning for every family that wants it.

    Lots of schools districts have reopened safely and in-school covid transmission has been far lower than community transmission. Is it equitable that Oakland must be last in line, and be returning for 5 hours a week rather than 5 hours a day?

    As we return, let’s try to build back better. A good place to start is continuing to implement the “Literacy for All” board policy and leveraging the recommendations of the NAACP Oakland’s recent administrative petition.

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    Erin Proudfoot over 3 years ago

    Please look at the new 3' guidance released by the CDC, CDPH, and Alameda County. The OUSD/OEA MOU states that it will follow CDC guidance so we are able to make this change NOW to accommodate more students safely in the classroom this SPRING. There's no longer a need to separate classes into 2 cohorts when 1 cohort can safely fit in a classroom under these new guidelines. This would allow our elementary school kids 4x a week in the classroom. (The half days are ridiculously hard for working parents, but I don't see that being able to change for the Spring, unfortunately.) As for fall, please be more clear in your messaging: You are planning for a 5x a week full-time school schedule for TK-12 students. As long as the public health guidelines say it's safe, there is absolutely no excuse not to commit to a full-time return for all grades. All adults will be vaccinated (who want it). Hybrid planning should only be a back-up if this virus takes a completely different turn for the worse.

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    Andrea Lee over 3 years ago

    Please make sure there is a comprehensive plan to reopen schools full time for the fall. No excuses, no delays. Offer families who do not want in-person a well-constructed virtual option. Make it equitable for all families to be back in school NOW!

    Vote Yes on Black Reparations tonight!

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    Laura Powell over 3 years ago

    The district has a duty to provide full-time, in-person school to all children in Oakland. The guidance from public health authorities makes it clear that this can be done safely. OUSD is receiving significant funding to overcome any obstacles to reopening safely. There should be no more excuses.

    In addition, our school is not reopening for in-person instruction for TK-2 until April 12. You should not be claiming that all TK-2 students are returning on March 30 because it is not true.

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    Please reopen over 3 years ago

    I am a public school teacher in the Bay Area (not OUSD). Why are we giving our students the MINIMUM educational hours and setting the bar so low? All of the surrounding counties teach to the middle; OUSD should do the same, but ends up teaching below the middle. Why not set the bar higher like other districts? Why not help provide REAL support to those students who are struggling instead of keeping them disengaged with minimal instructional hours? Research has repeatedly shown that by expecting more and providing more, students will achieve more. Also, people need to stop assuming that everyone who wants school to open is a "privileged white parent." In my community, the BIPOC families want to go back just as much as the white families. Also, there are plenty of white parents with kids in special ed or with mental health issues who are struggling so much right now. We are a diverse school district serving ALL students; let's start treating ALL of our students and families with respect!

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    Ismael Armendariz over 3 years ago

    I stand with oir black students, families, and educators. As a Chicano/Latino, I fully stand woth Dolores Huerta and urge thw school board to support the Black Reparations Resolution as written. #reparationsforblackstudents

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    Van Rourke over 3 years ago

    Ousd/OEA/parents are shouting at each other until we're blue in the face. How can we make any meaningful progress when we can't agree whether to follow CDC/health dept. guidelines or even agree on the definition of 'school'? Can we please focus on reality and facts? Can we agree that science is facts and that decisions must be made based on facts, especially when it comes to children's health and well being and that we need to trust the experts in their respective scientific fields? Can we agree that zoom is not school? I personally believe education (academic and interpersonal learning) happens in physical classrooms WITH peers/teachers physically present. I believe that a school that is open for students five hours a week is NOT an open school.

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    Carolyn Bernstein over 3 years ago

    2.5 hours of school in person twice a week is not sufficient- given CDC recent data we don't need cohorting and all children should be allowed to be back in school 5 days a week if they would like- especially at the younger ages

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    Melanie Gensler over 3 years ago

    Five days, not five hours! The School Board needs to take a proactive stance to get schools open, full-time, this fall! The CDC/ACDPH guidance recommends 3' of distancing, which opens up space for all kids to return to classrooms, full-time. OUSD needs to follow the science and not the demands of the teachers' union!

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    Megan Bacigalupi over 3 years ago

    Under the approved MOU, OUSD can safely reopen for 5 full days per CDC, CDPH and ACDPH guidelines (agreed to by OUSD and OEA). Principals do not have clarity from the district on these revised guidelines and should be given them to allow for schedule changes. OUSD students will be receiving just five hours of in-person per week, meanwhile in Berkeley students will get five hours per day, five days per week. Elem students should be offered option for 5 days in one cohort, which also eliminate the need for cleaning between cohort.

    Additionally, OUSD should commit to five full days for Fall 2021-22 school year for ALL grades. We understand if public health guidance dictated otherwise plans would need to change but please prioritize a full return for fall.

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    Micaela Mazzini over 3 years ago

    The School Board needs to do its job and get schools to reopen, full-time by fall. You are failing our kids by continuing to kowtow to the unions demands—follow the science. Kids around the US and even in the Bay Area are already back on school 5 days per week. Why are you normalizing the idea that it’s okay for kids to only be in class 5 hours per week?

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    david castillo over 3 years ago

    OUSD should immediately follow the CDC and ACDPH guidance on recommendation of 3 feet distancing.

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    Mary Cousins over 3 years ago

    OUSD should immediately follow the CDC and ACDPH guidance on recommendation of 3 feet distancing. This means we do not need A and B cohorts - in most cases, the whole class of students that wants in-person instruction can return all together. This will allow for OUSD to offer 4-5 days/week to students who have chose to return in-person. Please follow the science with actions, not words.

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    Rachel Teisch over 3 years ago

    OUSD needs to meet its legal obligations to provide full-time in-person instruction for K-12 now, like neighboring districts. Teachers were prioritized for vaccination, andCDC, Alameda County and CDPH have reduced distancing to 3 feet so that pods can be eliminated and full classes ca resume. Do the teachers (and particularly the union) realize how devastating their continued to attempt to move the bar higher and higher (beyond what is even reasonable at this point -- deep cleaning???) to the children and their community? Only when teachers start losing their jobs because thousands have fled the district, # of classes per grade are reduced and schools closed will they realize it.

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    Jamie Eder over 3 years ago

    California recently adopted the CDC guidelines for student distancing in school --- 3ft. This is a significant change and means in that schools no longer need to use cohorts. Students should be allowed to attend in person 5 days a week. Schools are not using deep cleaning because there is no covid surface transmission. For example:
    Albany: students attend 5 days a week, from 9-1pm or 9-1:30pm.
    Berkeley: students attend 5 days a week, about the same time as Albany
    Piedmont: students attend 4 days a week, in AM or PM for 2.5 hours
    The approved agreement between OEA and OUSD specifically says to follow CDC and CDPH guidance. Why doesn’t OUSD follow the CDC guidance on social distancing? There is no need to have cohorts of students.

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    ThinkOf TheChildren over 3 years ago

    We are failing our kids by committing to 5 hours of in person education per week. We owe our children 5 DAYS of in person education. New CDC guidelines have no cohort requirements and only 3 feet of distancing. All of our school sites are capable of supporting 5 days of in person instruction and we should follow neighboring districts in 5 days of afternoon instruction.

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    Maryann Kongovi over 3 years ago

    OUSD needs to meet its legal obligations to provide full-time in-person instruction for K-12 now that everyone agrees it is safe to do so. There are no longer any excuses to delay; the MOU is in place, teachers are vaccinated and the CDC, the County and CDPH agree classrooms can be back at capacity for all grades. Continued foot-dragging and delays are inexcusable and will continue to fuel the mass exodus of families from the district. We've already lost at least 1000 kids, or two elementary schools worth. How many more before this is resolved? How many schools will need to close, and how many teachers will lose their jobs when enrolment falls off a cliff in 2021-22 because of OUSD's failure?