St. Paul students walk out over pandemic concerns

Students walked out of class Tuesday in St. Paul, and teachers there are planning a rally of their own.

Both demonstrations are over COVID-19 precautions.

In Minneapolis Monday, a similar scene played out where hundreds of educators and staffers marched for better benefits.

St. Paul students and staff say they’re disappointed in the district’s reaction to the rise in COVID-19 cases.

"We feel that the district has not seeked out our voices, and those who have spoken out have not been heard," said student leader Jerome Treadwell.

"We are in the midst of a public health crisis, keeping our student familes safe from the threats of multiple variants of covid-19 and continuing to provide options to students is critical at this time," Treadwell said.

Members of the administration say there currently are no plans to return to online learning districtwide, despite the rising infections within the schools.

"All the things are intertwined, but the district started with envisoion and closing down schools earlier this year these are the same folks who are saying we should have larger classes and we dont need the mental health supports that we all know we need," said Leah VanDassor, President of the St. Paul Federation of Educators.

"It’s not just the bargaining team or a few SPFE leaders that want this to happen, this is about all of our members speaking out to the district to let them know that we want these things to happen," she said.

A petition with more than a thousand signatures has been circulating online. In it, St. Paul students are asking for a cohesive COVID-19 plan.

The petition includes a letter reportedly from St. Paul Public Schools, which says the district needs to do everything it can to keep its doors open.

The district says it’s considering moving individual schools to online learning if needed.

Students say this ignores both student and staff member concerns.

During a rally Monday, Minneapolis educators also said pay is a major issue in both getting and retaining teachers, especially during the pandemic.

"We get a lot of passionate people, and then not being paid enough kills the passion," teacher Liza Maney said. "If you can’t live on one job, why would you continue that job is what it comes down to."

Teacher Kirsten Hoffer also said, "Today, our main message is that our ESPs need to be paid a living wage. They are the lifeblood of our school community."

Students at all eight St Paul Public Schools high schools and some middle schools plan to walk out Tuesday.

They are asking for the district to immediately close for at least two weeks while omicron continues to spread.

Last week, members of the St. Paul Federation of Educators sent a letter to the St. Paul Public School District, and asked leaders to come up with a plan as the number of COVID-19 cases continues to climb.

A St. Paul Public Schools district spokesman issued the following statement in response:

Saint Paul Public Schools respects students’ rights to free speech and peaceful assembly, and we support students taking a more active role in their own health, including getting vaccinated, wearing masks, getting tested for COVID-19 and staying home if they are sick.

In addition to offering weekly COVID-19 tests for all staff in our buildings, and providing take-home tests for students showing symptoms of COVID-19, SPPS is also taking additional steps to help ensure the health and wellness of all students and staff, including:

• Making medical grade and N95 masks available for all staff members; these masks have also been ordered for students
• Ordering additional rapid tests for staff and student use
• Developing school-by-school metrics to determine if/when a building should temporarily shift to virtual learning
• Continuing isolation and quarantine of students and staff per the district’s updated guidelines
• Continuing to hold weekly vaccine clinics at 360 Colborne and Gordon Parks High School, as well as other community-hosted clinics
• Continuing to require masks for everyone in our buildings
• Pausing non-essential activities including in-person school tours and field trips

As a district, it is our responsibility to ensure students who cannot stay home have a safe place to be, with access to food and support for online learning, as well as to provide essential in-person services for students receiving special education. Therefore, if any schools move to virtual learning, it will include a requirement that all staff members at the affected site(s) who are not sick or in quarantine report to work.

The district will continually monitor staffing levels and operational readiness, and provide staffing resources as they become available so students and teachers can return to in-person learning as soon as possible.