Jeffco, honor your commitment to educators and our community

Kristopher Schuh and the Members of the Jefferson County School Board

The Collaborative Monitoring Committee must be consulted and asked to give recommendations before final decisions are made that impact the health and safety of our students, staff and community.

To: Kristopher Schuh and the Members of the Jefferson County School Board
From: Chanda Reyes

Yesterday, the Jefferson County Public School District released an updated quarantine process.

This process was created in collaboration with Jefferson County Public Health (JCPH) and observing Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) guidelines.

Unfortunately, district leadership did not include all partners in these conversations and decision making. This is a direct violation of our Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) regarding the creation of our Collaborative Monitoring Committee (CMC). This committee was created to make recommendations before final decisions are made regarding safe working conditions while educating through a global pandemic.

Our MOU language states the following:

"The District will create a collaborative monitoring committee with members appointed by the Superintendent after an application process and association recommendations. The committee shall consist of members of the JCEA, JESPA, administrators, and parent/community representatives.

The committee is created to monitor Colorado and Jefferson County pandemic conditions and school data including school infection rates, student attendance and engagement, and other pertinent data for the purpose of making recommendations for adjustment to the Restart plan, this MOU, and suggest solutions for problems that arise out of the pandemic conditions. Recommendations must be data-informed from findings and information from the Colorado and Jefferson County Public Health Departments. Recommendations will be made to District leadership after the committee agrees to the recommendation using a consensus model."

In this pandemic crisis, we must acknowledge that working conditions in our physical school buildings extend far beyond the school itself, into the homes, families, and communities of every educator and school staff member.

We share the belief with the district that our students must have access to safe, and high-quality learning experiences. It is in the best interest of our entire community that we take every step we can to keep students, employees, and our community safe from the continued spread of COVID-19. Transparency and collaboration are critical to our collective success.

The Collaborative Monitoring Committee must be consulted and asked to give recommendations before final decisions are made.

We the undersigned expect that unilateral decision-making will not continue and that Jeffco will honor their commitment to include stakeholders in these critical decisions.