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Florida Virtual School. Jan 2021 - Present 3 years 3 months. Current virtual teacher of 7th Accelerated Math. PLC Facilitator. Led professional development for school house and presented at state ...
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- Voi, Taita-Taveta, Kenya
Jul 7, 2020 · The mandate shocked some Florida educators, including Amy Spies, a fourth-grade teacher in Daytona Beach whose small classroom cannot accommodate the recommended six feet of space between each of ...
- Overview
- Federal safety guidelines, but not enough federal funding
- 'There are no easy answers'
Florida teacher Amy Spies' classroom is normally so cramped that her 22 fourth-graders do not even have space to hang their backpacks over their chairs.
So if every student returns when school begins next month, there is no way, she says, that her class will be able to follow health guidelines that recommend keeping 6 feet between students to reduce the chance of transmitting the coronavirus.
But Spies' school, R.J. Longstreet Elementary School in Daytona Beach, has yet to present an alternative to her that would make social distancing possible. A move like bringing on a second teacher who could teach half her students in another classroom seems highly unlikely, given her school district's budget is facing a $14 million deficit.
"They have already tried to cut anywhere humanly possible," said Spies, 46, who worries that because she donated a kidney to her aunt in 2011, she would be at risk for complications if she gets COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. "With the safeguards they are attempting to have in place, I just don't know where they're going to get the money, or even the manpower, to ensure it's all happening."
Spies' district is far from alone. As educators across the country look to reopen schools in the fall and welcome at least a portion of their students back in-person, they find themselves in an impossible situation.
With their budgets decimated by the economic downturn, many school districts are wondering how they will pay for costly new cleaning procedures, health screenings and other safety measures for those reentering their schools for the first time since the pandemic shuttered them.
If schools bring students back in-person, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends they provide adequate soap and hand sanitizer, turn desks to face the same direction, install sneeze guards in areas such as reception desks where it isn't possible to maintain social distancing, provide visual cues like tape on floors to help students and staff stay 6 feet away from each other, and close communal spaces, such as cafeterias and playgrounds, if feasible, or stringently disinfect them between use if not.
The recommendations will be expensive to implement: For an average school district with 3,659 students in 8 school buildings, hand sanitizer alone will be $39,517. Additional custodial staff to sanitize schools could be another $448,000. And if schools add bus aides to screen students for fevers before they board, that would be an additional $384,000.
Congress did provide some funding to schools through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security, or CARES, Act at the end of March — $13.5 billion — but education advocates say much more is needed.
Hopes were raised this week when Democratic Sens. Patty Murray of Washington and Chuck Schumer of New York on Tuesday introduced a $430 billion coronavirus relief bill for child care and education, $175 billion of which would go to K-12 schools.
Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, called the bill "visionary" in a statement and said it would "provide the 'must haves' of physical distancing, deep cleaning, PPE for educators and students, and resources to support our most vulnerable students."
Lily Eskelsen García, president of the National Education Association, urged lawmakers to promptly pass the bill.
While all schools are struggling to make their new reality work, experts say districts in which the majority of students live in poverty will be the hardest hit.
Schools are primarily funded through tax revenues, with about 90 to 92 percent of funding coming from state and local sources, including property and sales taxes, Yost said, which have suffered since the pandemic ravaged the economy and cost millions of Americans their jobs. The remaining 8 to 10 percent of funding is generally federal.
In Cobb County, Georgia, which has about 113,000 students, school officials are looking at a $65 million shortfall, according to John Floresta, the school district's chief strategy and accountability officer. That's after the county received approximately $16 million in federal funds from the CARES Act.
"We appreciate that," Floresta said of the CARES funding. "But in a district with a $1.2 billion budget, it doesn't amount to much."
Meanwhile, in Taunton, Massachusetts, about 160 teachers and staff have received layoff notices ahead of the new school year amid a $5.8 million budget cut for the district.
James Quaintance, a career technology education teacher at Taunton High School and president of the Taunton Education Association, said if students return to class in-person, they will require more teachers, not fewer, and more money to fund a safe education.
Florida Standards Advocate Captain - Amy Spies. @auspies. Amy Spies began teaching intermediate elementary after receiving her BA and MA in elementary education in Florida. Upon completing AFT's Thinking Mathematics professional development, she taught middle grades mathematics for eight years.
Amy Spies Math Teacher at Florida Virtual School United States. amy spies Lexington, SC. Amy Spies Office Manager at Telamco Waseca, MN. 13 others named Amy Spies in United States are on LinkedIn ...
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Jul 28, 2019 · “Final day of #FloridaSpringsInstitute powerful trips to water & waste water treatment plants. Think before you flush, limit consumption, & be thankful for the biological & chemical sciences keeping our water supply safe! #Water #VCSScientists @rjlCardinals @jmschuld @jlwatson11”
Nov 6, 2023 · Amy Spies adds, “I am excited that this great team is bringing to the stage my story of empowering female friendships and young women coming into their own.” Follow along with the show on ...
