By CBS Baltimore Staff
In a letter to Baltimore school leadership, Baltimore Teachers Union President Diamonté Brown called for City Schools to transition to virtual learning starting Wednesday until Jan. 7 amid a surge in COVID-19 cases.
The Maryland Department of Health on Tuesday reported 6,218 new confirmed COVID cases, by far the most recorded in a 24-hour period. The state’s 7-day positivity rate is now 12.15%, the highest since June 2020.
The teachers union said in an announcement that after speaking with Labor Relations and Baltimore City Public School Staff, they are concerned about the lack of preparation and contingency plans in place amid the surge, spurred by the Omicron variant.
“We had six cases on Friday, six on Sunday, six more on Monday and 18 yesterday,” said Baltimore City College teacher and Union representative, Franca Muller Paz, “and then today we have 25 teachers symptomatic this morning that didn’t report to school.”
But school officials are saying differently. “Our schools are much safer than the city at large,” said Alison Perkins-Cohen, Chief of Staff for Baltimore City Public Schools.
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