Special to El RrunRrun
We wish we were kidding.
But we're not.
The Brownsville Independent School District – whose board president has long claimed that the COVID-19 crisis is a hoax for hospitals and doctors to get rich – is requiring its 7,000-plus employees to show up bright and early next Monday morning to report for work.
That's right, in a letter sent to all district employees, Superintendent Dr. Rene Gutierrez sates that "Due to the approaching start of the new school year, we will resume our regular work schedule ad hours Monday through Friday, beginning Monday, August 17, 2020."
(Click on graphic to enlarge)
Workers are given the option of working from home or at the work site conditioned on getting the approval of their immediate administrator. Considered essential employees, they will have to be available during the regular work schedule and hours.Distance learning will begin on August 25, the following Monday. However, all BISD employees must report to work on August 17. The letter asks that if the employee has any questions to contact his immediate supervisor or Human Resources at (956) 548-8031.
We assume that Gutierrez includes all teachers and para professionals who work in the classrooms as well as the various departments across the district.
Gutierrez ha long argued with the board that the handling of the viral crisis is merely an "administrative" one and that he should have a free rein to deal with it and that the members should not intrude into what he views is his exclusive purview.
But there is more than administration involved as the Brownsville community. As of August 13, there have been 17,618 positive COVID-19 cases in Cameron County, the majority of them in Brownsville. The virus is literally everywhere in the city. The elderly are advised to sequester themselves in their homes and the young are warned to maintain a healthy social distance from their older relatives.
So far, the county's health department has said it has confirmed that 407 people have died from the virus, again, the majority from Brownsville.
So much for BISD board president Minerva Peña's "hoax." And Gutierrez should reconsider his assessment that this is a mere "administrative" matter. To many unfortunate families, it has become a matter of life and death. Will the district's attempts at a surreptitious opening of the district increase the chance that the virus will spread further into the homes of BISD employees?
The caption at the bottom of the letter should be paraphrased to read:
"BISD does not discriminate against on basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability or genetic information in employment, or provision of services, programs and activities, or COVID-19 transmittal."