SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The Sacramento City Unified School District [SCUSD] was hit with a surge of coronavirus cases as students and staff return to the classroom following their winter break.
The district recorded 1,589 positive cases for the week of Jan. 3, 307 were teachers and 1,282 were students. SCUSD officials had to deal with 586 teacher and staff absences last Friday, but were unable to find substitutes for half of those classes, prompting principals and other administrators to step in to help.
Some schools are being hit harder than others, but COVID positive cases are being experienced district wide, according to the SCUSD.
To combat these issues, some classrooms are doubling up, some students are spending their day in auditoriums with crowds, and in one case, teachers bussed students home after bus drivers called out sick, according to David Fisher, president of the Sacramento City Teacher’s Association.
Fisher says he and other educators have concerns about what the plan will be to address the immediate staffing shortages. They hope to meet with administrators to address the plan as these issues are expected to last for weeks.
”Our district and school site leaders are working hard to manage staffing shortages as they arise while keeping our students and staff safe through our health and safety protocols, and providing an equitable learning environment for all students,” SCUSD wrote in a letter to families.
Victoria Flores heads the Student Support and Health Services department for SCUSD. She says the district has strong health safety measures in place to keep students safe and says they want to keep the doors to schools open. Those measures include a vaccine mandate for older students, providing free testing, and requiring masking.
Jorge Aguilar, SCUSD Superintendent, reiterated the district’s commitment to students, staff, and families in a message sent Sunday. The district continues to urge those who can to get vaccinated and for anyone who is feeling sick to stay home.
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