On Tuesday at 5:00 P.M. the St. Martin School Board will hold a Special Board Meeting to consider the Superintendent's Reopening Plan. As teachers and support staff who work in these schools everyday, we want to see schools reopen as soon as possible, but we have serious concerns about the districts' ability to keep staff and students safe.
Our Union surveyed almost 15,000 teachers, school employees, parents and community members from all over Louisiana. We found that in COVID Region 4 (which includes Acadia, Evangeline, Iberia, Lafayette, St. Landry, St. Martin, Vermilion), only 32% of school employees felt comfortable with their children returning to school.
So far, roughly 1,700 parents have chosen virtual learning options to keep their families safe, but at the moment, the only online learning option offered by the school district is administered by Edgenuity. Many parents do not understand that this education is not equivalent to what is being offered by St. Martin Parish certified teachers and staff. We must come together to provide quality distance-learning options in order to ensure that all children can safely access a quality education.
We have an obligation to keep children safe and to provide the best education possible. Of course, virtual teaching is not ideal and teachers will have to work even harder to ensure children continue to learn, but we don't have a choice. Given the recent spike in cases, we believe it is simply not yet safe to reopen schools for in person education. We should start with virtual-only and then, once we've seen cases decline for 14 consecutive days, then we can consider how to reopen safely.
It's important for the Board to hear from educators like you before they make these life-or-death decisions.
Here's what you can do:
1. Call your board member. Click here to find the name and phone number for your Board member.
2. Send an email. Click here to send an email to the entire School Board.
3. Attend the meeting. If you feel that you can safely attend the Board meeting, then please join us on Tuesday afternoon so the Board can hear from us in person!
Special Board Meeting
Tuesday, July 21, 2020 -- 5 P.M.
Administrative Office
625 Corporate Blvd., Breaux Bridge, LA 70517