Thoughts about the April 5 date

[Ashley Schmiedicke]

Dear Los Alamos School Board,

Thank you for allowing and asking us for our thoughts about coming back to school on April 5. I am a teacher at Chamisa and have been doing remote and small group learning since the beginning of January. I am fine with coming back to school full time on April 5, but I have 2 requests I would like to voice.

My first request is that all teachers be vaccinated before returning to school. I, myself, am one of the 16% who still has not received any notification about getting a vaccine, or even making an appointment through the schools. I admit, I have been waiting very patiently and I know you all have been doing your best to get everyone a vaccine, but with the approaching April start now looming over my head, my stress levels are increasing every day. I have been working in close contact with students daily and I also have elderly parents at home whom I am helping take care of (and they have not received a vaccine either, even with their older age and conditions). I worried about bringing COVID home, and I worry now that my breaking point is coming with all of these added stresses (like P/T conferences, and what PED is now requiring of 1st grade teachers--LETRS training and dyslexia screening). I am doing my best to stay put together and to keep a cheerful attitude, but please know that every day it gets harder to keep waiting and waiting. We still have 3 months to finish the school year and anything could happen. I am placing no blame anywhere or to anyone, but my mental state is being pushed to and past its limits. I know a lot is out of my control, but still.

My second request is to ask for ample time to prepare for returning to the classroom during the day. The last time we had to switch, it was very quick with little preparation allowed. It set a lot of teachers on edge and it took some time to recover. It will take time to reformat our classrooms and create new plans and schedules all over again. I am expecting we will continue in person small group learning until March 26, the day before spring break starts, leaving us with little time to prepare for the Monday we come back. I do not want to work during my Spring Break to get everything ready. It is a break for us all and I intend to keep it that way in order to prepare myself for finishing off this year strong and in a better state of mind. You have encouraged and reminded me to keep my mental health in check and take care of myself. I am asking that you honor that request of us and you do not significantly add to the workload we already have, especially those of us who teach remotely and in-person learning in the elementary grades. The dynamics for elementary schools are very different from those in middle and high school. What is planned for them does not always work for us.

I thank you again for taking the time to listen (or in this case-read) my thoughts and requests. I appreciate what you are doing and I am giving myself a pat on the back for courageously saying how I am feeling right now (I don't speak up very much). Thank you again.

Ashley Schmiedicke

1st grade teacher at Chamisa 

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Ashley Schmiedicke, M.Ed.

First Grade Teacher

Chamisa Elementary

a.schm...@laschools.net

Office: 505-663-2470

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