Edibles, Safety, Teachers, Nurses, and Kitchens Concerns are Many for Territory’s Schools
On Monday, the Senate Committee on Education and Workforce Development received testimony from the Department and Board of Education about the status of after-school programs, kitchen equipment, school bus transportation, school safety, staffing, learning loss prevention, and sports programs.
2022-09-14 12:45:04 - VI News Staff
Commissioner nominee Dionne Wells-Hedrington, Superintendents Ericilda Ottley-Herman, Victor Somme III, Stephan Jurgen, and Board Chairman Kyza Callwood were present to testify. Overall, senators urged officials to take proactive measures to address school needs.
“Is everything fixed? No. Are we perfect? No. But we are willing to have those difficult conversations, find solutions to our myriad of problems and work closely with all stakeholders to make sure that our schools are exceptional learning communities,” said Wells-Hedrington.
Schools began instruction on Aug. 8. Wells-Hedrington pointed out several issues being faced by students and staff. Decaying buildings, teacher shortages, and increasing aggression amongst students were areas of concern. She also identified that outside of school, in the personal lives of students, some are facing poverty and low-income households, causing some students to join the workforce to support their households financially.
Sen. Carla Joseph asked Wells-Hedrington to objectively grade the safety of schools in the territory. Wells-Hedrington provided a grade of C minus, to which Joseph agreed.
Pertaining to the St. Croix district, as he addressed school violence, Victor Somme III said that “the safety and wellbeing of students, faculty and staff, and visitors are tantamount because unsafe school environments result in the demise of teaching and learning.”
Wells-Hedrington added that panic badges for employees will be implemented. She added that the social and emotional development of students will be implemented through pre-k programs.
“Additional grant funding has allowed us to do just that. By intentionally focusing on social-emotional learning,” she said.
The 2022-23 school year has a total of 10,198 students enrolled in the territory, broken down into 5,087 for the St. Thomas-St. John district and 5,111 for the St. Croix district. Currently, there are 2,207 active employees in the Education Department — 1,071 for St. Thomas-St. John and 1,1036 for St. Croix. There are 105 vacant positions on St. Croix, 20 of which are teaching positions, and 78 vacancies in St. Thomas-St. John, six of which are teaching vacancies. There are currently 61 international teachers on St. Croix and 70 on St. Thomas-St. John through the H1B Visa Program. The Education Department is also awaiting the arrival of 19 additional teachers for St. Croix and 19 for St. Thomas-St. John.