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House and Senate Hold Hearings on School Reopening

House Hearing

On Wednesday, the House Education and Labor Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education held a hearing, Back to School: Highlighting Best Practices for Safely Reopening Schools.

Subcommittee Chairman Gregorio Sablan (D-MP) and Ranking Member Burgess Owens (R-UT) led the hearing. In opening remarks, Sablan and Owens both established safely conducting in-person learning as a top priority. However, the hearing quickly struck a partisan tone. Sablan pointed to the successes of the American Rescue Plan (ARP), which was enacted last spring, in supporting safely reopening schools, while Owens criticized ARP for “not delivering.”

Witnesses included a school superintendent, a public health expert, a leader in education and civil rights, and a journalist. Witnesses and Committee Members largely focused on the ARP’s impact on school reopening and the public health implications of in-person school, including partisan discourse around the value of mask and vaccine mandates and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidance.

View the House hearing

Senate Hearing

Yesterday, the Senate held an oversight hearing, School Reopening During COVID-19: Supporting Students, Educators, and Families.

Secretary of Health Xavier Becerra and Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona testified.

In opening remarks, Chairwoman Patty Murray (D-WA) outlined the challenges schools face because of COVID-19 and emphasized the need for in-person learning to be safe. She criticized partisan fighting about health decisions impacting students and called on her colleagues to work in a bipartisan manner to better support students and schools.

Ranking Member Richard Burr (R-NC) noted that most schools are conducting successful in-person learning and that vaccines and treatments provide improved health outcomes. However, he criticized Secretaries Becerra and Cardona for not working more closely with Congress.

Becerra highlighted his Agency’s response to mitigating the virus, as well as supporting the social, emotional, and mental health needs of students. Likewise, Secretary Cardona highlighted his agency’s priorities around returning to in-person learning and supporting all students. Both Secretaries pointed to the utility of ARP funds and the need to enact the Build Back Better Act.

During a question-and-answer period, many themes emerged around the challenges with successfully operating schools during the pandemic, including school personnel shortages and the need for increased support for students with disabilities and their families.

View the Senate hearing

Posted:  1 October, 2021
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