President Joe Biden is being accused of backtracking on his promise to reopen the country’s schools after the White House added small letters to his promise and made it clear that a full reopening is still far from sight.
Biden’s initial promise in December was to reopen “most of our schools” in his first 100 days in office. In January, he specified that the goal only applied to schools that teach classes up to the eighth grade. And this week the White House said schools will be considered open as long as they teach face-to-face classes at least one day a week.
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki on Wednesday defended the goal, calling it part of a “bold ambitious agenda.” But he also said it’s a bar the administration hopes to surpass.
“Certainly, we don’t plan to celebrate it in 100 days if we achieve that goal,” he said. “We definitely hope to build from that.”
The White House had faced increasing pressure to explain the goal as the reopening debate gained urgency. Biden had never detailed what it meant to reopen or how to define success. Pressed on Tuesday’s question, Psaki clarified that one day a week of face-to-face learning would meet the mark.
“His goal he set is for most schools (hence more than 50%) to be open on the 100th day of his presidency,” he said. “And that means a little teaching in the classrooms. Therefore, at least one day a week. Hopefully, it’s more ”.
The target attracted criticism from Republicans who said Biden is setting the bar too low. House House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy found it unacceptable and said schools are ready to open now. Representative Vicky Hartzler, R-Mo., A former teacher, said the goal does not reach what students need.
“Having only 51% of our schools reopen just one day a week is not a success,” he said. “We should work to ensure that all of our children return to full-time face-to-face learning safely.”
With the new warning, the promise seems far less ambitious than Biden pointed out when he first made it. In December, it looked like his promise was to reopen half of the country’s more than 130,000 schools. When reduced to K-8 schools alone, the scope declined to include approximately 90,000 schools below high school.
Now, critics say, the goal has moved so low that perhaps it had already been met. Data from Burbio, a service that tracks school opening plans, recently reported that 58% of K-12 students are learning in person to some degree.
“The administration should not strive to achieve this goal,” said Jonathan Butcher, an education fellow at the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank.
Tracking progress on the goal has been difficult due to the lack of federal data on the subject. Last week the Biden administration said it would start collecting data from 7,000 schools to show if they work online, in person or in combination. The Trump administration refused to gather this data, saying it was not the responsibility of the federal government.
Some companies and researchers have tried to collect the data on their own, including Burbio, who reported on some recent advances on schools returning to face-to-face classes. According to the company, about 42% of students learned completely online by the end of last month, up from 55% in the first week of the year.
Biden’s promise is part of his broader plan to fight COVID-19 and start the economy. Its $ 1.9 trillion plan includes $ 130 billion to help schools fix ventilation systems, equip themselves with protective equipment and take other steps to open them up. Returning students to the classroom is considered a key step in returning parents to work.
But reopening efforts have faced roadblocks due in part to slowing vaccine deployment and clashes with teachers. Although schools in some areas teach in person, many remain mostly or entirely online. In cities like Chicago and San Francisco, districts have faced resistance from teachers who refuse to return until their demands are met.
Before clarifying Biden’s goal this week, even some of his top health officials expressed their doubt that it would be achieved. Speaking to teachers last month, Dr. Anthony Fauci said the goal of reopening the Biden school “may not happen because there may be mitigating circumstances,” including the new COVID-19 strains.
The delays have frustrated many parents, including some whose children have been learning from home for nearly a year. In Congress, the debate over reopening has intensified as Republicans oppose greater school relief and say there is evidence that schools can safely reopen.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published a study last month to find that, with the wearing of masks and other precautions, it is generally safe to have the school in person. CDC principal Dr. Rochelle Walensky later added that vaccinating teachers “is not a prerequisite for the safe reopening of schools.”
Republicans saw the statement as further support for the reopening, but the White House refused to take a firm stand on the issue, saying Walensky made the comment “in a personal capacity.” Psaki said the White House would expect updated school guidance that Biden asked the CDC for.
The CDC guide is expected to be released soon, which is likely to recommend safety measures and indicate when it is safe to operate in person.