Jacobin Radio

Suzi talks to Arlene Inouye, UTLA Secretary and Bargaining Chair about the system-wide pressures facing teachers, support staff, students, and their families, all seeking safety and stability during the deadly and disruptive pandemic. A new NEA survey reveals anxiety, exhaustion, burnout, and an alarming number of educators leaving the profession they have loved. Arlene gives us a big picture of the crisis and the pre-existing problems made suddenly worse by COVID: teacher and staff shortages, declining enrollment, and irregular class attendance. We’ll hear how UTLA has addressed the health and safety concerns such as ventilation, masking, and other actions to make safer classrooms, and what ideas and programs they are trying to implement to address these issues in an unstable environment with ongoing funding issues. Georgia Flowers Lee brings her experiences and difficulties teaching preschoolers during the pandemic. The conditions of teacher and staff shortages—plus frequent shutdowns for two weeks whe