Texts reveal exchange between CDC director, teachers union boss before school reopening memo
Text messages between Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Rochelle Walensky and American Federation of Teachers (AFT) President Randi Weingarten have shed light on their relationship and raised concerns about the CDC’s school opening guidance in February 2021. The CDC had handed the text messages over to the Fairfax County Parents Association in response to a Freedom of Information Act request. The text messages appear to show Weingarten exerting pressure on Walensky to keep schools shuttered, with the CDC ultimately modifying its language to indicate that “all schools have options to provide in-person instruction” rather than “all schools can provide in-person instruction.” Weingarten praised the CDC’s decision not to recommend that schools resume in-person instruction, and Walensky referred to Weingarten as her “friend.” The CDC director plans to step down from her post at the end of June and will testify before the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic this month to address concerns about the agency’s guidance on school reopening.
FAQs:
What are the concerns with the CDC’s school reopening guidance in February 2021?
The text messages between Walensky and Weingarten suggest that the CDC may have modified its language in response to pressure from the AFT to keep schools shuttered. The CDC ultimately recommended that “all schools have options to provide in-person instruction” rather than “all schools can provide in-person instruction.”
What is the Fairfax County Parents Association?
The Fairfax County Parents Association is a group of parents in Virginia who requested the text messages between Walensky and Weingarten through the Freedom of Information Act.
What is the American Federation of Teachers?
The American Federation of Teachers is a union representing teachers and other education professionals in the United States.
What is the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic?
The Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic is a congressional committee that has been scrutinizing the communications between Walensky and Weingarten in the run-up to the February 2021 guidance release. Walensky is scheduled to testify before the Subcommittee later this month.
CDC Director and Teachers Union Leader Exchanged Texts Prior to School Reopening Memo, Messages Show
Newly revealed text messages between American Federation of Teachers (AFT) President Randi Weingarten and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Rochelle Walensky indicate a “chummy” relationship between the two and suggest that the CDC may have caved to pressure applied by the AFT to keep schools shuttered in February 2021. The CDC had handed over the text chains to the Fairfax County Parents Association following their Freedom of Information Act request. On February 11, 2021, a day before the CDC issued guidance that put the brakes on full, in-person instruction in schools, Weingarten informed Walensky that she had learned of language in the incoming guidance that seemed “at odds” with something they had previously discussed. The phrase “all schools can provide in-person instruction” in the original guidance was later modified to “all schools have options to provide in-person instruction.” Weingarten praised the CDC for its decision not to recommend that schools resume in-person instruction in a press statement, to which Walensky responded, “This gave me the biggest smile of my week, Thank YOU, Friend!” The text messages will come under examination later this month before the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic.