by: Chloe HumbertPosted on:

Pennsylvanians Against Covid Letter to the Editor published in The Philadelphia Inquirer about pandemic barriers to attract people to the teaching profession.

Thanks to Jim Lertola of Pennsylvania for pointing out how rampant spread of infectious disease is a barrier to becoming a teacher in Pennsylvania, and elsewhere. 

The Philadelphia Inquirer – Letters to the Editor | June 2, 2024 – Healthy Schools

Newspaper clipping: The Philadelphia Inquirer. Healthy schools. A recent op-ed rightly highlighted the financial barriers to becoming a Pennsylvania teacher. However, the state should also prioritize tackling airborne viruses in schools, which are now hazardous workplaces due to the spread of COVID-19, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and influenza. The CDC found that students were the main driver of COVID transmission during the initial reopening phase, endangering their health and that of their teachers. Insufficient air filtration and poor ventilation in buildings and buses are at the core of this problem. In 2023, the governor budgeted $500 million to reduce environmental hazards, which could be used to update school HVAC systems. Federal American Rescue Plan funds are still available. Inexpensive HEPA or Corsi-Rosenthal filters should be placed in every classroom, and opening windows encouraged. Let’s not tolerate sick schools anymore. If we literally clear the air, we can help attract quality teachers and protect the health of our kids. James G. Lertola, Pennsylvanians Against COVID, Kennett Square
Newspaper clipping: The Philadelphia Inquirer. Healthy schools. A recent op-ed rightly highlighted the financial barriers to becoming a Pennsylvania teacher. However, the state should also prioritize tackling airborne viruses in schools, which are now hazardous workplaces due to the spread of COVID-19, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and influenza. The CDC found that students were the main driver of COVID transmission during the initial reopening phase, endangering their health and that of their teachers. Insufficient air filtration and poor ventilation in buildings and buses are at the core of this problem. In 2023, the governor budgeted $500 million to reduce environmental hazards, which could be used to update school HVAC systems. Federal American Rescue Plan funds are still available. Inexpensive HEPA or Corsi-Rosenthal filters should be placed in every classroom, and opening windows encouraged. Let’s not tolerate sick schools anymore. If we literally clear the air, we can help attract quality teachers and protect the health of our kids. James G. Lertola, Pennsylvanians Against COVID, Kennett Square

The average teacher is taking on risk in so many ways, and the already high risk category disabled person who wants to be a teacher is effectively barred from the profession by the threat of infectious disease because of lack of health & safety provisions persisting in many schools, despite available pandemic related funds that have too often been diverted.