After days of bargaining over safety precautions, the Chicago Teachers Union and city officials have reached an agreement to restart in-person teaching.
Omicron is upending schools all across the country. Parents and families are navigating last-minute virtual learning, changing risk assessments and their own positive COVID-19 tests.
Teachers began refusing to show up for their jobs in person on Wednesday amid skyrocketing COVID-19 cases, prompting the cancellation of classes for more than 300,000 public school students.
Schools are just starting to get regular access to testing; teachers are still paying out of pocket for masks and air purifiers; and qualified substitutes and bus drivers can be hard to find.
This school year was supposed to bring a return to normalcy. But the stress of transitioning back to in-person learning and the ever-changing pandemic has caused a surge in mental health needs.
Georgia is easing COVID-19 quarantine and contact tracing requirements in schools as Gov. Brian Kemp urges superintendents to keep students attending in person. Kemp and Public Health Commissioner Kathleen Toomey said Thursday that school employees no longer must quarantine after they are exposed to the virus as long as they wear a mask and don't develop symptoms.
The announcement by district officials follows the teachers union voting to switch to remote learning due to the latest COVID-19 surge. The status of classes for the rest of the week remains in limbo.
State-funded prekindergarten and child care teachers in Georgia will get two more rounds of $1,000 bonuses paid from federal coronavirus aid. The Department of Early Care and Learning announced the plan Tuesday.
With so-called "critical race theory" dominating the discussion before the 2022 General Assembly session begins, some worry more pressing problems like school funding could get short shrift.
Emory University is switching to virtual classes to start the spring semester because of a national surge in COVID cases fueled by the omicron variant. In a letter to the university community, President Gregory Fenves said Tuesday Emory will transition back to in-person learning on Jan. 31 if conditions permit.