NY POST ED REPORTERS SUE EDELMAN AND SELIM ALGAR KEEP PROBING DOE

There were two recent articles in the NY Post that don't expose the Department of Education in a favorable way. Today, Sue Edelman has a piece on the lack of transparency in DOE when it comes to recording how many people were sickened due to COVID-19. Back on Thursday, Selim Algar cited a letter Comptroller Scott Stringer wrote to the Mayor and Chancellor on how poorly the DOE is planning for the fall.

From Sue's piece:

 The city Department of Education refuses to say how many teachers and other workers have fallen ill with COVID-19 — or even whether it’s keeping track of the pandemic’s impact on its staff.

The secrecy has exacerbated credibility issues in the agency that began at the start of the coronavirus outbreak, when the DOE failed to close schools and promptly inform employees about infected co-workers, insiders told The Post.

“The DOE has lost the trust of a lot of families and staff. A  key part of restoring that trust is transparency and not keeping information from people,” said teacher Liat Olenick.

“They absolutely should be tracking Covid cases among the staff, and sharing that information with the school community.”

As Chancellor Richard Carranza prepares for a full or partial reopening of school buildings this fall, he and his executive team should know how many employees have gotten sick and how many can safely return, staffers said.

“It would tell you about the condition of your workforce,” Manhattan teacher Ellen Schweitzer said. “While preserving privacy, there should be extensive tracking and contract tracing, especially when children are showing up.”

Without naming the fallen employees, DOE has tallied 79 killed by COVID-19 as of June 22, including 31 teachers and 28 paraprofessionals.

The DOE does not count a school nurse and 14 school safety agents because they were paid by other city departments, bringing the true total of school workers lost to 94.

Further down, the case that MORE started where they managed to get hundreds to file PERB charges against the UFT is publicized:

Meanwhile, a group of teachers has filed an “improper practice” charge against their union with the state Public Employee Relations Board for failing to represent them during the pandemic.

The United Federation of Teachers “halted indefinitely” the filing of more than 200 COVID-related grievances against the DOE for alleged health and safety violations, the group said in a statement.

“By keeping schools open and requiring staff in the buildings until March 19, the DOE endangered the lives of thousands of employees,” it said.

I heard from Jeff Kaufman on this case. We don't understand why both the DOE and UFT were not made co-defendants here as they are working together but we will see where the PERB charge goes.

While reading the Edelman article, there was a link to another from Thursday by Selim Algar.

The Department of Education gets an F for its planning ahead of the new school year, city Comptroller Scott Stringer said Thursday in a scathing letter to city officials.

“While I can appreciate the complexities involved in making many of these decisions, there is no good reason why planning and preparation for the fall – as well as communication with parents and staff – is not more advanced,” Stringer wrote to Mayor Bill de Blasio and schools Chancellor Richard Carranza.

To maintain social distancing, the Department of Education has broached the likelihood of staggered classes in September, with groups of students alternating between remote learning and in-person instruction.

But beyond that, increasingly frustrated parents say they’re operating in the dark with the opening bell set to ring in just 76 days.

“Parents, for instance, have no idea what days their children will be at school and what days they will be at home, much less what the school-day hours will be,” Stringer wrote. “Teachers have yet to be told what their class structures will look like, or when they should report to work.”

While Stringer said he was “humbled and amazed” by the transition of school staffers to remote learning amid the coronavirus crisis, he demanded increased DOE transparency and specificity on the practice moving forward.

This blog published an unofficial calendar based on past years and we made a prediction that the fall will be a mess.

Further down, Selim writes:

Stringer submitted a list of 18 questions he wanted answered by July 3 to help parents prepare for what awaits.

Among them, he requested a summary of specific staggered class proposals.

“For parents – especially those who work on an hourly basis and depend upon predictable schedules to make a living – this is vital information,” he wrote.

There are so many teachers and others who are employed in the schools who have the same childcare dilemma as they are parents. Clearly, all of us need guidance.