Denver and Seattle school districts are canceling classes this week because of staff shortages, reports say

Schools in the US are facing staff shortages that are forcing some to close or go online. Alejandra Villa Loarca / Newsday RM via Getty Images

• Schools in Seattle and Denver are reported to close this week due to insufficient staff.

• Seattle Public Schools said they had “insufficient staff” to open schools for students.

• According to The Denver Post, three schools in Denver will turn to distance learning due to staffing problems.

According to reports, school districts in Denver and Seattle are canceling classes this week due to staff shortages.

Three Denver subway school districts are canceling classes and closing on Friday because they can’t find enough staff and replacement teachers to take students’ classes, the Denver Post reported Tuesday. Another three schools will switch to distance learning for up to three days this week due to the shortage, The Post added.

Seattle Public Schools said in a statement on their website that they will be closing on Friday due to insufficient staff to open their schools. SPS said in a statement to the Seattle Times that more than 600 teachers asked for a replacement for Friday, the day after Veterans Day, a federal holiday.

According to reports, the schools are to be closed on Thursday due to Veteran’s Day.

Seattle officials told the Times that the number of vacation requests was “an indication of the fatigue” staff and students felt months after they returned to school.

The labor shortage has hit schools in the US, affecting temporary teachers, canteen workers and school bus drivers. Some schools are so desperate for staff that they have asked parents and even their own students for help.

A Denver Public Schools spokesman told the Post that it was doing everything in its power to keep its schools open, but warned that there was “a critical staff shortage” affecting “our ability to run our schools safely.” impaired.

DPS was unable to fill vacant positions, some employees were on leave to care for relatives, some other employees were sick, the Post reported, citing the spokesman.

The story goes on

The SPS said in its statement that “we are aware that an unusually large number of SPS employees are taking vacations on Friday and we do not believe that we have sufficient staff to provide schools with the necessary environment for quality learning open”.

The class cancellation was caused by “the nationwide shortage of substitute teachers,” according to a Seattle Education Association statement reported by the Seattle Times. “Refilling missing staff is more difficult this year as the extra support is required to meet all COVID-19 safety protocols,” the union statement added, according to The Times.

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https://news.yahoo.com/denver-seattle-school-districts-canceling-143513933.html