Dear friends and partners, 

The new year is, undoubtedly, off to a rocky start. Not only is Los Angeles facing its worst week of COVID cases to date, but on Wednesday, our eyes also turned to the nation’s capital, where hate and ignorance manifested themselves in the ugliest ways. With a new semester just days away, I wish more than ever that we could welcome students into physical classrooms so teachers could help them process these events.

But even during this moment of darkness, there are signs of hope. We can see past the treasonous gasps of a racist would-be authoritarian regime to the culmination of years of organizing by communities of color, particularly women of color, that resulted in two historic victories in Georgia. Life-saving vaccines are being administered to frontline workers across the country—and in California, teachers will be near the top of the list as doses roll out for essential workers. And while we can’t welcome students back in person just yet, our teachers continue to work tirelessly to build virtual communities and provide remote instruction, including with a revised agreement that includes additional interactive time.

I wish that our leaders—at every level of government—were doing everything in their power to get this terrible virus under control so that we may begin to safely reopen our schools at the District level. Federal financial relief is thankfully on the horizon, and the Governor just shared his initial budget proposal, which includes funding to incentivize the reopening of schools. But Districts like LAUSD, which serve the highest need students who live in communities hit hardest by this COVID crisis, need more than just incentives to return to campuses. We need a standard, structured, fair system that puts students first in reopening plans. As we continue to mold District reopening plans, we are also advocating and working with our partners at the city, county, state, and federal levels to ensure students are prioritized in the long road ahead to recovery.

We’re all in this together, apart.