May-June Advisor 2021 web

ADVOCATING

MAY – JUNE 2021 CEA ADVISOR 9

WITH $1 BILLION IN FEDERAL FUNDS EARMARKED FOR CONNECTICUT SCHOOLS, TEACHER INPUT IS ESSENTIAL Historic levels of K-12 public

facilitate smaller class sizes and greater social distancing; recruiting other school personnel, such as nurses and custodial staff, to keep buildings safe and healthy; investing in staff capacity and teacher retention to ensure enough educators, counselors, and other school personnel to support students’ needs; providing additional stipends and other incentives for educators who commit to intensive summer school; developing a pool of floating substitute teachers to provide coverage wherever needed within a district; and compensating educators for additional time necessary to serve students’ educational needs. CEA convened a focus group comprising staff, leaders, and classroom teachers, including former Connecticut Teachers of the Year David Bosso, Meghan Hatch-Geary, Sheena Graham, and Mary-Kay Rendock, to solicit their ideas on how federal funding might best bridge gaps that existed prior to the pandemic as well as address problems created or exacerbated by the crisis. Their ideas included addressing or providing for • Mental health services and supports • School indoor air quality • Disrupted learning • Educational technology • Summer school and afterschool enrichment • Public health protocols, sanitation supplies, and PPE

• School facility repairs and improvements • A dedicated remote teaching facility that allows for virtual learning where it makes sense, eliminating the need for dual teaching • Reduced caseloads for social workers and school counselors • Reduced class sizes so that teachers can focus more effectively on students’ social- emotional needs • More school psychologists (One group member commented, “The demand on our sole school psychologist and sole social worker is enormous.”) • Custodians (“There were times when there was only one custodian trying to take care of a four-story school building.”)

• HVAC (“Every school should have air conditioning.”) • Resources for school-based health clinics • Supplies for science labs and classes like mechanical engineering, and expanded connections with the community in these areas • Paid bus fare for student field trips • Activities and clubs • Professional development in anti- bias and other training that can’t necessarily be done in house

education funding are headed to Connecticut—more than $1.1 billion—thanks to a federal coronavirus relief package signed by President Joe Biden. A certain percentage of the money must be allocated toward summer enrichment, afterschool programs, and recovery from learning loss. The vast majority of expenditures, however, is left to the discretion of local districts, within guidelines developed by the State Department of Education. The SDE process must incorporate input from various stakeholders, including students and their families, educators and their unions, school administrators, and disability and civil rights organizations. In fact, U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona’s guidance to state commissioners underscores that “educators and their unions should be an essential component of the process.” CEA leaders and members have seized on this opportunity to help ensure funding goes where teachers know it is needed most. A handful of states, including Iowa, Michigan, New Mexico, and others, have already submitted plans for how they will use the supplemental funding. Their proposals include hiring additional educators to address learning loss and reach staffing levels that

CEA is participating in State Department of Education

meetings to provide input on how the American Rescue Plan funding is spent.

WHAT WOULD A FULLY FUNDED SCHOOL LOOK LIKE?

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As districts undertake the crucial work of planning for the allocation of American Rescue Plan Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ARP ESSER), talk to your local association president and CEA UniServ Rep and share your ideas about how those federal relief dollars could best serve your school. Many local presidents are drafting letters to district superintendents, and this is an excellent opportunity to remind them that educators who serve students day in and day out offer an invaluable perspective and should have a meaningful say in how federal education funds are allocated. A SOLUTION TO SCHOOLS’ PERVASIVE AIR QUALITY ISSUES Bill shows the way; funding provides the means Even before the pandemic, indoor air quality was a serious problem in schools throughout the state. Children were sent home due to extreme temperatures and humidity, teachers were forced out on leave, mold grew behind ceiling tiles, and students and educators held classes in hallways to escape the heat—or bundled up in coats to stay warm. Concerns about sick schools have only intensified, given the airborne spread of COVID-19. With the recent influx of Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds into our state, Connecticut has the resources to improve its school facilities and create safe, healthy environments in which to teach and learn. ESSER funds provide opportunities to install, maintain, or repair heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems as well as remediate and prevent mold. Your voice can make a critical difference in making sure Connecticut’s schools have clean, updated heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems that keep students and staff healthy. Urge your legislators to take action in the remaining weeks of this legislative session.

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“When politicians feel the pressure, that’s when they act. We’ve seen it with CEA’s postcard campaigns—they really work. As teachers, we are very tired, of course. But this is the most fertile time for change.” Bill Delaney, Enfield Teachers’ Association Vice President

Senate Bill 288: An Act Concerning Indoor Air Quality In Schools takes important steps to address problems that have been plaguing school buildings for years—problems that have only grown more serious during the pandemic. Contact your legislators and urge them to pass SB 288. Learn more at cea. org/stand-up-for-healthy-schools-contact-your-legislators .