St. Martin Federation of Teachers and Support Personnel

January Newsletter

COVID-19 RELIEF FUNDING

Louisiana school districts are poised to receive nearly 4x more COVID-19 relief funding under the latest federal relief plan. This aid does come with restrictions in how districts may allocate the funds, but it is a much needed and long overdue step towards a reprieve for our educators and students who have been ‘making it work’ for far too long. We are excited about the possibilities this funding presents, but it is vital that teachers

The St. Martin Federation of Teachers has been working with members and district officials to address a concerning incident that happened on Wednesday at Breaux Bridge High School. Some teachers and school staff were told that their shirts with ‘chucks and pearls’ icons were inappropriate and they were sent home. Unfortunately, this was done in a way that allowed for no conversation or private discourse on the meaning behind these shirts, or their cultural significance.

This week we conclude the second week in the ongoing Special Legislative Session, bringing us to nearly the half way point. Due to the oncoming Hurricane Delta, some meetings were moved up until earlier in the week, most notably both the House Education and Senate Education Committees conducted their weekly meetings at the same time on Wednesday morning. They both considered important legislation, but here are some of the highlights:

One of the most important bills that we will hear in this abbreviated legislation is Senate Bill 31 by Senator Cleo Fields. If passed, this bill would prohibit the use of statewide student assessments conducted during the 2020-2021 school year from being used to evaluate teacher performance. Essentially, schools could (and likely would) still have testing this year, but the scores couldn't count against a teacher's performance evaluation.

School buildings cannot open for in-person instruction until the below conditions are met:
- Community transmission of COVID-19 is under control in the region;
- There is a public health infrastructure to support effective disease surveillance, tracing and isolation in schools;
- Staff who are at high risk have access to special accommodations;
- The district and school have funded safeguards and implemented protocols, including physical distancing, face coverings, access to hand-washing facilities, cleaning supplies, and updates to ventilation and;
- AFT members and leaders, families and community partners are included in the reopening planning process.

Louisiana Federation of Teachers has compiled the following resources to help inform members of their rights as schools begin to reopen in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic:

AFT Frequently Asked Questions Q & A

AFT Know Your Rights

U.S. Dept. of Labor Employee Rights

U.S. Dept. of Labor FFCRA Excerpt

U.S. Dept of Labor FFCRA Q&A