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Maria S. Salinas
“The Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce recently joined Los Angeles business leaders in advocating for the prioritization of underserved schools in the state and county’s reopening plans.
People living in underserved communities are overrepresented in the essential worker population. Students in these communities do not have the academic support or resources for optimal learning; they need in-person learning options. We cannot afford to have these students fall behind academically. It’s important to quickly bring our K-12 students back to in-person learning. We believe that a safe classroom setting overwhelmingly benefits students, especially those from underserved communities.
We urge school officials to prioritize underserved schools in its reopening plans and to ensure that the proper safety protocols are in place to create a safe environment for students, teachers, and staff.
Scientist and the Biden administration have made it clear that it is critical for schools to open as safely and as soon as possible, and remain open, to achieve the benefits of in-person learning and key support services because it has been shown that schools can reopen safely if they follow strict mitigation strategies whether or not teachers and staff have received the COVID-19 vaccine.”
