The expected reversal of Gwinnett’s back-to-school summons for teachers and other staff was released Wednesday after a public outcry which included thousands of calls, emails, texts and social media posts to journalists at The Atlanta Journal Constitution, an online petition to school board members and a letter to district leaders from candidates running for board seats.
On Friday, May 1, Gwinnett County Public Schools released a that called for all employees to return employees to work on-site following six weeks of online learning and working remotely due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The overwhelming feedback urging district leaders to rethink that directive and resulted in a revised plan that goes in effect immediately:
School-Based Employees
• Continue the current schedule for principals,
assistant principals, office staff, custodians, and
School Nutrition Program staff.
• Teachers and other staff will no longer be required
to report as previously communicated in the
original “Return-to-Work Sites Plan.”
• Principals will work with teachers and other staff
to arrange times for them to return to the school
to close down their classrooms or work spaces and
complete other necessary tasks.
Central Office Personnel
• All employees who hold director-level positions
and their administrative assistants are working on
site as of Wednesday, May 6. Division leaders are
working with staff to adjust schedules as needed to
address individual employee situations and to limit
the number of people in a work location.
• Similarly, Division leaders will work with all
remaining central office staff members, who will
return to their work sites beginning the week of
May 11.
Gwinnett leadership believes these adjustments address childcare issues as well as health and safety concerns, said spokeswoman Sloan Roach.
“Principals and directors will make adjustments so that anyone who is apprehensive about coming back to work on-site can work remotely, rotate the times they come in or whatever needs to be done,” she said.
Employees who previously filled out Families First Coronavirus Response Act forms to receive federal aid should contact the HR department said Roach.
“I don’t believe those forms have been processed yet,” she said.
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