Safety concerns remain, Cape teachers union leader says

The Cape teachers union president told school board members Sept. 24 the union still has safety concerns after its vote of no confidence, but Superintendent Bob Fulton said all reported issues have been addressed.

Cape Henlopen Education Association President Lacey Brown said some problems were righted before students entered the building, but mask-wearing, social distancing and sufficient signage issues remain.

CHEA is concerned the district implemented American Pediatric Association guidelines of three-foot distancing rather than the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommendation of six feet, Brown said.

“We cannot become complacent with safety standards and skipped steps,” Brown said. “We need to keep our students and staff safe.”

At the meeting, Fulton said this year’s district opening was the most rewarding he had experienced in his 30 years.

“It was really good to hear feedback from staff who were overwhelmingly thankful for everything that was done and the fact that we were in school and not 100 percent remote like most districts,” he said. “It made me realize how important it is to see students in our schools and how much more it means to them.”

Fulton said district officials knew there would be COVID-19 cases going into the school year.

“If anybody in the community or school or staff thought we would go the whole school year without one staff or student having COVID, that’s unrealistic,” he said. “But if we do our jobs in school with social distancing, wearing masks, washing hands, and following the protocols and guidelines we put in place, we minimize the chances of things being spread in school, and that’s what we're trying to do.” 

In a Sept. 25 statement, Fulton said he was surprised CHEA leaders said there were still unresolved safety issues. He said district procedure follows the CHEA contract that all safety concerns are to be reported to building principals.

“All of the district principals have been keeping track of any concerns and noted that there have been very few (less than 10) reported concerns/questions,” Fulton said. “All were minor, and all were resolved quickly if not immediately. There are no outstanding reported concerns at this time.”

By email Sept. 29, Brown said when she speaks at board meetings as CHEA president, she is not voicing her personal concerns, but rather the concerns members have brought to the union. She said some issues she brought forward are overall issues with the plan, and are not building-specific.

“We have advised all of our members to let their building principals know if there are concerns/issues,” Brown said. “However, some members do not feel completely comfortable going to their administrators, so there may be some things that are sent to us and not their principals, that I can’t help.”