Depicted: Attendance sheets pile up in the office due to teacher absences.
By Staff Writers Josephine Chew, Sreetama Chowdhury, & Kimberly Huang
MSJ had 50 out of 92 teachers not in attendance on Tuesday, February 19, following a three-day weekend. To deal with the shortage of staff, substitutes were drawn from many levels: teachers with prep periods, district substitutes, and school administration. Several classes were diverted to C-120 which was filled as of first period.
Principal Zack Larsen sent a LoopMail to all parents and students after second period reading, “We had an unusually high number of teachers suddenly call in sick for today and were able to get teacher coverage for all classes. Please be assured that your student has certificated staff in each of their classes and will be supervised and supported throughout the school day.”
This incident of teacher absences occurs in close proximity to the Oakland Education Association’s Saturday announcement that high school teachers in Oakland will be going on strike. Preceding their announcement, the Oakland teacher union unofficially called for its members to call in sick on January 18, after two years of failed labor and wage negotiations.
Multiple teachers and substitutes have declined to comment on the situation.
Photo by Web Editor Rishi Chillara
