Posted: Mar 16, 2021 / 08:12 PM PDT / Updated: Mar 16, 2021 / 05:44 PM PDT
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (KTXL) — Some local parents are getting the chance to share their opinions about the changes they want to see as their kids return to school.
The deadline for parents to submit their ‘learning options’ survey in the Sacramento City Unified School District is Wednesday.
The district and its teachers have both proposed April 8 as the date kindergartners thru 3rd graders could return to the classroom as the coronavirus pandemic continues but no agreement has been struck.
More negotiations have been set for Wednesday about topics like new building ventilation standards.
District officials said that when kids return the district is ready with new integrated video, microphone and screen systems that will follow a teacher around the room for the students who want to learn in person and allow for kids still at home to interact with their peers without it being like Zoom in school.
Members of the Parents Advocating for Student Success Coalition spoke out Tuesday to SCUSD administrators sharing their concerns that neither the district nor the teachers union is focused enough on the students and doing enough to address their true needs.
PASS claims unresponsiveness to their worries was an issue even before the pandemic.
“I called the school to ask for help and was always transferred to someone, to another person without getting a solution to this,” explained SCUSD Parent and Sacramento ACT member Elvia Vasquez.
“Tensions between the teachers’ representation and the district have seriously eroded the district’s ability to meet the broad educational and developmental demands of 46,000 students,” explained President and CEO of the Sierra Health Foundation Chet Hewitt.
When asked about the concerns raised by PASS, SCUSD officials sent FOX40 the following statement:
We are grateful for the work of these community leaders and community-based organizations for helping to empower and engage our families through the PASS project. We welcome this advocacy effort on behalf of our families especially those who may not have an understanding of how to navigate our K-12 system. These families deserve a strong voice when it comes to the future of their students and our district.
SACRAMENTO CITY UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT
The district and its teachers will sit down for another round of reopening negotiations Wednesday.
