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A window fan in a classroom at Nebinger elementary school. Such fans are being used for ventilation in 32 Philadelphia schools. (Dale Mezzacappa/Chalkbeat)
This story originally appeared on Chalkbeat Philadelphia.
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Big cities across the nation, from Boston to New York to Chicago, have managed to hammer out differences between their school districts and teachers’ unions over the gradual reopening of schools.
In Philadelphia, not so much.
Here, school buildings have been closed for nearly a year. A mediation process between the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers and the district has dragged for weeks, delaying the district’s planned opening of schools for some prekindergarten through second grade students until March 1. Teachers refused to re-enter buildings on Feb. 8 to prepare, choosing to protest outside their schools instead.