NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — A teacher and student advocacy group is concerned about school districts in the state reopening amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Tennessee Education Association (TEA) president Beth Brown said the organization is inundated with calls, emails and messages about children going back to school.
Brown said there is a lot of concern among educators about how to follow CDC guidelines and prevent people from getting sick.
"Those answers are not coming from the state. A lot of that is being left up to individual districts and we're not seeing a lot of clarity around that at the district level. I think that districts are struggling with that themselves," said Brown. She is a high school teacher herself and said she doesn't see how they can follow the six-foot social distancing rule.
"If I took out everything in my classroom except student desks, I still could not meet the 6 feet social distancing requirements suggested by the CDC and the department of health," she said.
Some school districts currently plan to hold digital classes this fall. However, others plan to return to school fully. Brown said she hopes the state can provide some guidance in these issues.
"What I'm hearing from medical professionals is that reopening schools creates a significant risk of contributing to the spread of COVID-19," she said.
A spokesperson from another advocacy group, Tennessee Professional Educators, said they believe if a teacher or student were to test positive for coronavirus, the entire class should be tested.
"Parents should be notified expeditiously through social media, text, or email. We also believe the members of each at home family to be tested," said JC Bowman in a statement.
