EDUCATION IN CRISIS

Expanding Inequity

As Los Angeles school closures approach the first anniversary, teachers from a high-priced private school jump the COVID-19 vaccination line.

“It makes me very angry. It’s wrong, it’s unethical. As our community has gone through this pandemic, it’s been our community that’s been the hardest hit, so it makes me angry that some folks can jump the line.”

- LAUSD parent Jazmin Garcia

In its latest guidelines on how to return students to school, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that teachers should be vaccinated as quickly as possible. LAUSD’s Superintendent Austin Beutner has called vaccines “a critical piece to this reopening puzzle.” UTLA’s President, Cecily Myart-Cruz says that “the path to a safer reopening must include…vaccines for all educators and school staff.” Yet, it will “be two to three weeks and perhaps longer before teachers — and other essential workers in their tier of eligibility — could begin to make appointments for immunizations.”