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We must find ways to support each other. Teachers supporting teachers, unions and school officials supporting school staff, and all of us supporting students and families. - @rweingarten #TEACH21

It won’t be easy, and some people will try to make it harder, like those who have disparaged educators, scapegoated our unions, and blamed us for things outside our control like school closures caused by a pandemic. - @rweingarten #TEACH21

.@rweingarten: Both those who wanted schools open in person all this year, as well as parents who are still worried about whether their kids will be safe in school next year. #TEACH21

It’s the attacks from the Trump & DeVos crowd that offend me. They failed to develop a coherent strategy to help people through the pandemic, yet they attacked us as we were trying to create the safe conditions and trust that was needed to reopen schools. - @rweingarten #TEACH21

We developed our plan with health and education experts, and with input from our members. And as we learned more about COVID-19, our plan evolved with the science. - @rweingarten #TEACH21

Our public schools are centers of the community. It’s not just where kids learn academics; it’s where they build relationships. - @rweingarten #TEACH21

Unions have always worked to keep our members and those we serve safe. - @rweingarten #TEACH21

Creating safe conditions in schools during a public health crisis is not an obstacle to reopening classrooms; it is the pathway to going back, staying back and creating trust throughout the school community. - @rweingarten #TEACH21

You knew how important it was for kids to be in school, and you wanted to be back in your classrooms with the right safety measures. - @rweingarten #TEACH21

Now, with 9 out of 10 AFT members having been vaccinated, we can be even more confident about returning to school in person this fall. - @rweingarten #TEACH21

.@rweingarten: The vaccines have been game changers. And the more that people were back in school, with few outbreaks, the more that staff, students and parents trusted we could be fully back in schools safely. #TEACH21

"Since March, once I was fully vaccinated, I have visited our members throughout the United States—nurses and healthcare professionals who were on the frontlines of the pandemic in Alaska, Oregon and Washington." - @rweingarten #TEACH21

Schools can reopen this fall in person, five days a week, with mitigation measures; ventilation upgrades; and social, emotional and academic supports for students. - @rweingarten #TEACH21

That requires resources, and that’s why every day since the start of the pandemic, the AFT has fought in Washington for federal funding for schools. - @rweingarten #TEACH21

We’ve fought for the COVID-19 relief packages for families, for healthcare providers, to keep state and local governments and small businesses afloat—and to keep educators and other public employees from losing their jobs. - @rweingarten #TEACH21

While Donald Trump tweeted at schools to reopen, he either wasn’t interested in or wasn’t up to fighting the virus. We were working to reopen schools in a climate of chaos, fear and misinformation. - @rweingarten #TEACH21

The Biden administration has fought the pandemic with science, truth, transparency and, yes, money through the #AmericanRescuePlan. - @rweingarten #TEACH21

#COVID19 relief funds have been life-changing. Ask any parent who has received the #ChildTaxCredit. The funds have helped schools big-time. - @rweingarten #TEACH21

People whose loved ones have gotten sick or died from #COVID19 may have heightened fears about sending their children to school. Families may be skeptical that safety precautions will be in place. - @rweingarten #TEACH21

Thus far, the AFT has made 40 grants to state and local unions totaling more than $2.5 million, covering 1,400 AFT local unions in 22 states. And more grant requests are rolling in. - @rweingarten #TEACH21

We know that, first and foremost, we must work together to make schools safe and welcoming. - @rweingarten #TEACH21

Every school should be a place where parents want to send their children, where educators want to work and where our kids thrive. - @rweingarten #TEACH21

In Willmar, Minn.; Cincinnati; St. Louis; & Pittsburgh, members are going door to door, visiting students’ homes to talk about the health and safety and education programs in place, to encourage families to send their children back for in-person learning. - @rweingarten #TEACH21

With every door knock and every conversation, we are trying not only to bring students back to school, but to heal the fractures in our communities. - @rweingarten #TEACH21