HOLLYWOOD, Fla. – Some Broward County Public School employees who are scrambling to prepare for students' gradual return to schoolhouses starting Oct. 9 will be working this weekend.
Danielle Savage, a first-grade teacher at Stirling Elementary School in Hollywood, said she and her colleagues have so much to do she felt a bit of panic at first, but she no longer does.
“I have a list; I have a plan,” Savage said, adding she is going to take advantage of every day before her students return.
Not everyone feels as confident as Savage. Members of the Federation of Public Employees union have expressed mistrust and concern about the district’s ability to keep everyone safe during the coronavirus pandemic.
Linda Lewis represents school bus drivers who are members of the union. She said they are afraid of risking their health and the health of the students.
“We don’t know how many drivers are coming back,” Lewis said, adding “We have drivers who really suffer with bronchitis. They have sinus, they have asthma, high blood pressure.”
Willie Bailey, of the FOPE union, represents some of the facilities workers maintain the schools by keeping air conditioners working and buildings clean and sanitized. He said that as “the backbone of the schools,” they are concerned about safety.
“Facilities people have been working ever since the pandemic has taken effect over our schools,” Bailey said. "They have not stopped working.”
According to the Florida Department of Health, Broward County has had 77,631 confirmed coronavirus infections and 1,415 deaths associated with COVID-19. The data shows about 76% of the Broward patients who died were age 65 and older.