Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
There is nothing wrong with Camas schools and for that matter, they are represented by the same union as the teachers in all the school districts in SW Washington as well as Clark College: WEA-Riverside: https://www.wea-riverside.org/ I'm not sure what Procyon is bent out of shape about. Pandemic closures? They have affected the entire state and nation (and planet). Camas schools were some of the first in the region to get back to in-person classes at the lower grades has moved into hybrid learning at the higher grades.
Yes, I would have to agree. That recent Camas Covid outbreak that caused the school to close again could have really happened anywhere, really. Kids have been apart for so long, its been very hard for them. So, when some get carried away like that and don't wear masks at social gatherings, I think most can understand and relate even if it wasn't the smartest thing to do. We felt sorry for them more than anything, especially for the kids who had nothing to do with party.
Yes, I would have to agree. That recent Camas Covid outbreak that caused the school to close again could have really happened anywhere, really. Kids have been apart for so long, its been very hard for them. So, when some get carried away like that and don't wear masks at social gatherings, I think most can understand and relate even if it wasn't the smartest thing to do. We felt sorry for them more than anything, especially for the kids who had nothing to do with party.
Derek
Yes, and kids are back at Camas HS tomorrow. Biggest consequence is that they had to forfeit two football games that they would have likely won.
The pandemic has been a mess for everyone. I'm so ready for a halfway normal summer and normal school year next fall. I don't think the kids can take another year of this.
However, they have been closed for a year and the teachers union has no intention of going back full time, ever.
They had a Coronavirus cases per 100,000 metric in their 2020-2021 contract which is what has kept schools closed. The teachers are fighting tooth and nail to go back to having to work 5 days a week. High schools are getting 2-3 hours a week or so in person instruction.
Contrast that with private schools in the area. All in person, full student load, 5 days a week.
Additionally, Camas schools have been infiltrated by the Black Lives Matters, social justice crowd.
So, yes, if you like the following criteria, Camas schools might be for you:
Like 2 days a week for K-5
Like 2 days a week for 6-8
Like 2-3 hours a week for 9-12
Like social justice warriors for teachers
Like the Camas School District shuttering schools because someone sneezes
Like the high likelihood that closing down for cold and flu season to be the norm
Like being judged by the color of your skin rather than the content of your character
Like your children being treated like they are walking Ebola
Like social agenda taking precedence over academic excellence and high achievement
On top of that, you should see the vile things the teachers themselves have been saying about in person teaching about being around children. It is sickening. There's a Facebook Group on "Open Camas Schools" that has posted leaked information from the teachers union and the Camas School District. It really should make one think twice before entrusting these people with their children.
Camas' sole value proposition had always been the quality of the schools. Now the quality has been thrown out the window. The value of the community will eventually decline.
You do realize that current public school schedules in WA are being driven by state and Federal guidelines and not something that is at all under the control of teachers? You could move way up into the backwoods of Cowlitz County above Woodland as you suggested and you would find that the Woodland schools are following the same hybrid schedule as Camas. The pace of re-opening of schools in Camas and the rest of Clark County is exactly following the State Department of Heath criteria
And, in any event, what you are posting about school schedules is completely wrong.
Last edited by texasdiver; 03-21-2021 at 12:05 PM..
There has been a lot of frustration with the teachers' union including their reluctance to go back even after the Governor's mandate to do so. I think they were using their combined leverage to hold districts and kids hostage in order to get what they wanted. So, yeah, lots of parents, kids and even school and gov't officials were frustrated. But I don't think it was limited to Camas. Hockinson and other parts of Clark County had similar issues as did much of the state grappling with this. That is, what should reopening should look like and when?
Hey, lets face it, regardless of where one sits on the pendulum of opening things back up earlier rather than latter, Covid has been extremely difficult for all. Too many good people have died unnecessarily. I also know some local parents who were so upset that they actually left WA and moved to TX. So, there are some that were and are still very upset by the slow response statewide. Finally, the governor came out and said its affecting our kids' mental health and reopening should be a priority. That is something I think most already 'knew' many months ago, especially those with children. That is that mental health can be just as critical as physical health and just as important to take into account when making these difficult decisions.
Coincidently, we're headed to FL next week where kids have been back in school since August. FL was one of the earliest states to reopen its schools. And through using the proper safety precautions, it has been a success overall. So, it's quite a contrast we're seeing there along with some others.
I think there will be a lot of lessons learned across the state and nation when this is all said and done. Obviously, mistakes were made at all levels of federal, state and local gov'ts. But it at least feels like things are headed back in the right direction finally. There has been so much fear of the unknown as well as justified caution taken that it was sometimes hard to get that balance 'just right.' Were decisions made sometimes erroring too much on the side of caution vs not? I guess it depends who you ask. Though its definitely a 'hot button' issue right now among many. Now that our kids are able to return part-time it is at least relieving some of that pressure and frustration. But it will take a while to discover what the 'new normal' actually looks like. IMO, I don't things will ever be the same again nor should they. This should be a learning experience for all as painful as it has been.
Derek
Last edited by MtnSurfer; 03-21-2021 at 03:25 PM..
There has been a lot of frustration with the teachers' union including their reluctance to go back even after the Governor's mandate to do so. I think they were using their combined leverage to hold districts and kids hostage in order to get what they wanted. So, yeah, lots of parents, kids and even school and gov't officials were frustrated. But I don't think it was limited to Camas. Hockinson and other parts of Clark County had similar issues as did much of the state grappling with this. That is, what should reopening should look like and when? Derek
None of that foot dragging happened in any district in Clark County. Seattle and Portland yes, there is union foot-dragging about re-opening schools. But those urban districts also have many dozens of old schools that lack any kind of modern HVAC ventilation systems.
Feb. 8: 262.2 cases per 100,000
Feb. 15: 209.8 cases per 100,000
Feb. 22: 137.0 cases per 100,000
March 1: 105.4 cases per 100,000
March 8: 103.4 cases per 100,000
March 15: 88.8 cases per 100,000
Are the re-opening criteria overly conservative in Washington? I don't know. WA has clearly done a better job than most of the rest of the country. If the rest of the country had managed to simply match WA's infection and death rates then we would have seen over 300,000 fewer deaths nationwide, and the pandemic would be about over.
None of this has anything to do with teacher's unions. Camas is currently at 4x per week in-person learning for primary schools and 2x per week in-person/hybrid learning for secondary schools which is exactly what is specified for moderate covid spread under the state's guidelines. If you disagree with this your quibble is with the state department of health and not the local teacher's unions.
Last edited by texasdiver; 03-21-2021 at 03:50 PM..
You do realize that current public school schedules in WA are being driven by state and Federal guidelines and not something that is at all under the control of teachers? You could move way up into the backwoods of Cowlitz County above Woodland as you suggested and you would find that the Woodland schools are following the same hybrid schedule as Camas. The pace of re-opening of schools in Camas and the rest of Clark County is exactly following the State Department of Heath criteria
And, in any event, what you are posting about school schedules is completely wrong.
You must be on the payroll of the school district.
This is the TEACHERS union continually moving the goal posts and refusing to work. It's happening in Camas and elsewhere in the Portland metro area.
Feel free to join the Open Camas Schools Facebook group and read over the chatter.
A recent example is a parent posting an email from Skyridge Middle School from a few short days ago:
"I wanted to make sure to clarify that at this point, the secondary schools in Camas will not be moving to 4 days a week for our students."
Supposedly K-5 is going 4 days a week starting 22nd of March. But wait until next fall when coronavirus "cases" come back and the teachers union force the schools remote again.
Camas High School is doing "cohort A" and "cohort B" from 8am to about 11:45am. 2 days a week each. So, around 3.5 hours x 2 days, 7 hours a week in person.
Also, if the "guidelines" are federal, then why are the schools in mostly Republican, right to work, no-teachers union states pretty much all open and 5 days a week?
So what I said is true. If you want all of those wonderful bullet points for your children and high property taxes, by all means, go for it.
If you want good academic education at a reasonable cost to you, consider living outside the Camas school district property tax area and sending your kids to private school.
The shroud is off. Camas School District is trash.
Coincidently, we're headed to FL next week where kids have been back in school since August. FL was one of the earliest states to reopen its schools. And through using the proper safety precautions, it has been a success overall. So, it's quite a contrast we're seeing there along with some others.
That's the sad part about all of this. Florida has shown how it is possible. All of their kids will not have a year of isolation, missing education, depression and suicide. Yet no one in Washington has thought to replicate the Florida success. I suspect it is because it would show how a right to work, Republican governor-led state has made Inslee and the Washington teachers look like the absolute fools that they are.
Oddly enough, my family is also going to Florida, in early April. We're going to be shopping for a house to move into or build and later reside in.
My fear, based on the precedents that have been set and that continue, is that nothing will change. Students will be required to wear face masks indefinitely, when face masks are useless. The same for businesses. But even worse, the teachers union will force the schools to close in late October 2021 -- late November 2021 at the latest because "cases" are rising again. And they will rise again. It's a seasonal virus that triggers similarly to influenza. That's how "cold and flu season" came to be a saying. That means the businesses that keep getting bullied by the governor will be forced to close again.
None of that foot dragging happened in any district in Clark County. Seattle and Portland yes, there is union foot-dragging about re-opening schools. But those urban districts also have many dozens of old schools that lack any kind of modern HVAC ventilation systems.
Where are we at in Clark County? We are still in the moderate category. Here are the latest stats from the Clark County Health Department:
Are the re-opening criteria overly conservative in Washington? I don't know. WA has clearly done a better job than most of the rest of the country. If the rest of the country had managed to simply match WA's infection and death rates then we would have seen over 300,000 fewer deaths nationwide, and the pandemic would be about over.
None of this has anything to do with teacher's unions. Camas is currently at 4x per week in-person learning for primary schools and 2x per week in-person/hybrid learning for secondary schools which is exactly what is specified for moderate covid spread under the state's guidelines. If you disagree with this your quibble is with the state department of health and not the local teacher's unions.
My main points were that this has not been 'Camas' specific issue. So, I'm not seeing it a necessarily reflective of just that SD. Rather, its more of a statewide issue. Secondly, there is a lot of frustration among many parents and students whether you agree with them or not. It's something to be aware of and for some its enough to leave the state. So, its not a small matter for many. Whether or not one agrees with that including the rationale to open later than most states is another topic. Therefore, I think its a bit off topic for this original question - PDX vs. Camas/Washougal.
Regarding the teachers' unions, there has actually been a lot about this in the state and local news, recently. In addition, we received emails from our superintendent describing the challenges and protests by the teacher's union in re-opening. I think the governor's latest statements have helped to encourage them to negotiate a resolution with the unions. But there is no doubt there was a lot of push back, excuses and reluctance to re-open initially. I would consider that foot dragging, at least in the beginning vs a readiness to return.
I did, however, try to see the this from both sides knowing that the teachers have certain things they wanted to bargain for first. Not all of it was unreasonable. It just seemed very frustrating at the time which represented more unnecessary delays that could have been negotiated months ahead of time. They could have had a pro-active 'action plan to reopen' in place and ready to execute on vs. haggle over as a new thing in more of a reactionary way.
A few references if you haven't heard about all of this and I'll leave it at that since it really was more of a state matter.
"On the other side, many teachers and the unions that represent them have pushed back, worried that COVID-19 activity remains too high in the community, and puts educators and their families at an elevated risk."
The district has been following the state guidelines to the letter. The only interruption was when a large group of CHS football players decided to hold a Covid super-spreader event and the HS shut back down for four days in order to complete all the necessary contact-tracing. School policy isn't governed Facebook groups. I invite you to point to a single policy with respect to school re-opening that was driven by the union against the recommendations of the state department of health or the school district. You can't. Because there haven't been any.
And you are simply wrong about the current secondary school schedules. Cohort A attends full days from 8:45 to 3:25 on M,Tu and Cohort B attends full days on Th, Fr. And even with hybrid schedules, there are about 20% of parents who have chosen to keep their kids on full virtual learning for the remainder of the school year so teachers are simultaneously teaching in-person cohorts in class while teaching virtual students over zoom. It is a difficult task which is why they reserve Wednesdays for one-on-one help for students who need it.
This is essentially the same hybrid schedule being followed by all the districts in Clark County and, for that matter, Cowlitz county. Will Camas drop the hybrid cohorts and return to full in-person learning if Covid spread in Clark County drops to the low category for a sustained 2-week period as indicated by the state's guidelines? I honestly don't know. But I wouldn't trust some second-hand post on FB to reflect school policy. I suspect most teachers would actually prefer a return to full in-person classes now that most are getting vaccinated because running a hybrid classroom is a lot more exhausting and time-consuming than regular in-person classes.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
