The Prince George’s County teachers’ union sent a letter to the county’s public school board and CEO this week, seeking several safety precautions it says haven’t been addressed by the system ahead of a return to classrooms.

The union, which represents more than 10,000 educators, is requesting measures like ventilation upgrades in classrooms, coronavirus testing and contact tracing, hazard pay for in-person staff, and vaccinations.

“Achieving a healthy environment in our buildings is possible,” reads the letter, signed by union president Theresa M. Dudley. “We must not relent in the pursuit of this goal and we must ensure common standards so that each building, each child, and each family is able to rejoin in-person learning in the healthiest and safest way possible.”

Prince George’s County Public Schools told DCist in a statement that the school system has received the letter is preparing a response.

The public school system is one of the largest in the state, and has been operating remotely since shutting down in March of 2020. As coronavirus cases began to spike last December following the Thanksgiving holiday, PGCPS decided to delay a survey intended to gauge whether parents supported continued distance learning or a return to classrooms for the spring semester. A similar survey sent in October of 2020 found that nearly 70% of parents were not comfortable with a return to in-person learning.

Last month, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan called on all schools in the state to reopen for some form of in-person learning by March 1, and threatened legal action for districts that didn’t meet this request. Prince George’s County Public Schools CEO Monica Goldson sent a letter to the school community in late January following Hogan’s directive, indicating that a return to classrooms this spring was possible. Goldson said officials would reassess reopening plans in mid-February.

The union’s demands come as school districts across the region push to reopen classrooms — in some cases navigating pushback from educators, many of whom are not fully vaccinated. 

In Montgomery County, the state’s second-most populous jurisdiction behind Prince George’s County, the school board voted on Tuesday to begin a gradual return to classrooms on March 1, with the goal of bringing all students who choose in-person instruction back to classrooms in some form by April 26.  D.C. Public Schools reopened classrooms for thousands of students on Feb. 2, after months of negotiations with the Washington Teachers’ Union over the safety of in-person learning. One DCPS teacher passed away from COVID-19 over the weekend, prompting a complaint from the union alleging that DCPS violated safety procedures at the school where she taught.

Prince George’s County Public Schools began vaccinating teachers on Feb. 1, but so far, the county’s vaccination has been sluggish and beset with inequities and short supply. The county is the hardest-hit in Maryland, with nearly 70,500 cases of the coronavirus since the start of the pandemic.

Along with safety demands, the union’s letter also noted the steps already taken throughout the pandemic by Prince George’s County Public Schools to prioritize student safety — like maintaining remote learning, focusing on research-based approaches, and communicating with transparency — and reaffirmed the need for students to be learning in classrooms.

“We believe our students deserve in-person learning,” the letter states. “We believe that learning must be safe, and buildings must be reopened in a manner that not only protects the health and lives of our students – but also that of their families.”

The union is seeking a codified safety agreement with the school system before a return to classrooms.