Police arrested a former Littleton Public Schools paraprofessional, Kiarra Jones, last week after they said video footage revealed she beat a severely autistic, non-verbal child on a school bus for special needs students.
Police arrested a former Littleton Public Schools paraprofessional, Kiarra Jones, last week after they said video footage revealed she beat a severely autistic, non-verbal child on a school bus for special needs students.
A lack of teachers and a lack of funding means more burn out. Specialists are going into private practice where they can make more money, leaving schools scrambling.
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment said in an email to CPR that employers can require COVID-19 vaccination for in-person work for their employees, but an employee may be entitled to an exemption through the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Bruce Wilcox, president of the local teachers’ union, the Aurora Education Association, said he believes that vaccines are an important component in keeping students and educators safe and would like districts to work with staff if staff can’t get the vaccine for medical or religious reasons.
“We will work to ensure that all educators know their rights so that they can make an informed decision,” he said.
It s prom season, and the latest Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment public-health order, issued on April 15, specifically states that such events can take place this year despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Yet Littleton Public Schools has nixed proms for 2021 a decision that s spawned a mix of reactions among parents, as well as an unsanctioned event scheduled for early May.
Diane Leiker, LPS s chief communications officer, stresses that the alterna-prom is NOT a district or school-approved event, even as she defends the district s no-prom decision. There is a real disconnect between the CDPHE’s decision to allow counties to lift restrictions on large community and school gatherings while the CDPHE has told schools they must still follow the strict quarantine protocols through the end of the school year, Leiker maintains. These quarantine protocols make it difficult for schools to host large indoor gatherings even though county health officials and C