US Push to Reopen Schools as Teachers Get Vaccinated
2021-01-20
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1American political leaders are pushing for schools to reopen this winter as teachers started to receive COVID-19 vaccines.
2But others are concerned that they may not be ready.
3Last Thursday, President-elect Joe Biden proposed a $1.9 trillion spending plan to fight the virus in the United States and help the nation's economy.
4The plan calls for a national vaccine plan to administer 100 million shots in the first 100 days of his administration.
5The incoming president added there will be money to "safely" reopen a majority of kindergarten-to-eighth-grade schools in the first 100 days.
6Governor Gavin Newsom of California proposed a $2 billion plan to pay for testing, protective equipment and other safety measures to reopen the lowest grades as soon as February 16.
7In Ohio, Governor Mike DeWine offered to vaccinate teachers in February if the schools agree to have in-person teaching by March 1.
8In Arizona, where teachers started receiving shots this month, Governor Doug Ducey said he expects students will return to the classroom soon.
9The money will not go to schools that remain closed in Arizona.
10"Children still need to learn, even in a pandemic." he said.
11Arizona's education officials and hospital leaders, however, disagree with the governor.
12They warn that the state has the highest rate of COVID-19 infection in the nation.
13Johns Hopkins University reported, as of January 19, the U.S. has experienced 390,000 COVID-19 related deaths and more than 23 million confirmed infections.
14Michael White is a doctor at Valleywise Health in Phoenix, Arizona.
15He said, "We understand that learning and bringing our children together is very important."
16But to reduce the spread of the virus, he said children should not be outside of their family group.
17Last week, officials in Chicago, Illinois began a slow reopening with the youngest students.
18Since teachers have yet to receive vaccines, officials are providing them virus tests on school grounds.
19But some teachers refused to return because of COVID-19 concerns.
20Kirstin Roberts is a pre-kindergarten teacher in Chicago.
21She told the Associated Press, "I don't believe it's safe to reopen the schools. I don't believe it's safe for my family, I live with an elderly mom. I don't believe it is safe for the city's children or their families."
22Jeff Freitas is president of the California Federation of Teachers.
23The labor leader said vaccinations have to come first, then schools in California can talk about reopening.
24"We cannot put our own lives, the lives of our students, and our communities at risk during what is clearly an escalating crisis in our state," he said.
25California has only vaccinated health care workers and people in nursing homes so far.
26Utah is one of the first states to vaccinate teachers over other groups. Gov. Spencer Cox has said he wants to vaccinate all teachers by the end of February.
27Michael Crookston is a music teacher at Davis High School in Salt Lake City, Utah.
28He said the COVID-19 vaccine has "been a thing I've been looking forward to, a little bit like Christmas."
29I'm Armen Kassabian.
30And I'm Jill Robbins.
1American political leaders are pushing for schools to reopen this winter as teachers started to receive COVID-19 vaccines. But others are concerned that they may not be ready. 2Last Thursday, President-elect Joe Biden proposed a $1.9 trillion spending plan to fight the virus in the United States and help the nation's economy. The plan calls for a national vaccine plan to administer 100 million shots in the first 100 days of his administration. 3The incoming president added there will be money to "safely" reopen a majority of kindergarten-to-eighth-grade schools in the first 100 days. 4Governor Gavin Newsom of California proposed a $2 billion plan to pay for testing, protective equipment and other safety measures to reopen the lowest grades as soon as February 16. 5In Ohio, Governor Mike DeWine offered to vaccinate teachers in February if the schools agree to have in-person teaching by March 1. 6In Arizona, where teachers started receiving shots this month, Governor Doug Ducey said he expects students will return to the classroom soon. The money will not go to schools that remain closed in Arizona. "Children still need to learn, even in a pandemic." he said. 7Teachers are still afraid to return in person 8Arizona's education officials and hospital leaders, however, disagree with the governor. They warn that the state has the highest rate of COVID-19 infection in the nation. 9Johns Hopkins University reported, as of January 19, the U.S. has experienced 390,000 COVID-19 related deaths and more than 23 million confirmed infections. 10Michael White is a doctor at Valleywise Health in Phoenix, Arizona. He said, "We understand that learning and bringing our children together is very important." But to reduce the spread of the virus, he said children should not be outside of their family group. 11Last week, officials in Chicago, Illinois began a slow reopening with the youngest students. Since teachers have yet to receive vaccines, officials are providing them virus tests on school grounds. But some teachers refused to return because of COVID-19 concerns. 12Kirstin Roberts is a pre-kindergarten teacher in Chicago. She told the Associated Press, "I don't believe it's safe to reopen the schools. I don't believe it's safe for my family, I live with an elderly mom. I don't believe it is safe for the city's children or their families." 13Jeff Freitas is president of the California Federation of Teachers. The labor leader said vaccinations have to come first, then schools in California can talk about reopening. 14"We cannot put our own lives, the lives of our students, and our communities at risk during what is clearly an escalating crisis in our state," he said. 15California has only vaccinated health care workers and people in nursing homes so far. 16Utah is one of the first states to vaccinate teachers over other groups. Gov. Spencer Cox has said he wants to vaccinate all teachers by the end of February. 17Michael Crookston is a music teacher at Davis High School in Salt Lake City, Utah. He said the COVID-19 vaccine has "been a thing I've been looking forward to, a little bit like Christmas." 18I'm Armen Kassabian. 19And I'm Jill Robbins. 20Lindsay Whitehurst, Terry Tang and Allen Breed from the Associated Press reported the story. Armen Kassabian adapted the story for Learning English. Hai Do was the editor. 21We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section and visit our Facebook page. 22________________________________________________________________ 23Words in This Story 24administer - n. to manage the operation of (something, such as a company or government) or the use of (something, such as property) 25kindergarten - n. a school or class for very young children 26grade - n. a level of study that is completed by a student during one year 27escalating - v. to become worse or to make (something) worse or more severe 28nursing home - n. a place where people who are old or who are unable to take care of themselves can live and be taken care of