Minneapolis teachers strike marches on as negotiations focus on salary, mental health services
On the 16th day of a teacher’s strike in Minneapolis, much of the divide between the district and its teachers appears to ride on the teachers’ demand of improved mental health support for their students.
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - On the 16th day of a teacher’s strike in Minneapolis, much of the divide between the district and its teachers appears to ride on the teachers’ demand of improved mental health support for their students.
"I can’t even say enough about the importance of having mental health supports in school," teacher Kearney Burns told FOX 9 at the picket lines on Wednesday. "It’s hard to be away and it feels really disrespectful that in order to be heard we had to take such drastic steps."
The teachers want every school building to have at least one social worker, one school counselor, and one school nurse; as well as lower limits on how many students each worker would be responsible for.
At this point, the district is agreeing to one social worker in each building, and a reduction of social worker caseloads from a ration of 1:600 to 1:250.
"We’re still missing school counselors, and we’re still missing school nurses," Burns said of teachers’ continued demands.
Former student Eyala Elate says that during the pandemic he left the Minneapolis public schools district for online school, because of a lack of mental health support.
"There was like one counselor just kind of running around," Elate said.
Meanwhile, senior student Leila Sundin is one of many students who the teachers say are seeing drastic effects on their mental health, because of the pandemic and civil unrest.
"Kids are actually really suffering," senior Leila Sundin said. "I have definitely missed school before due to mental health. I should be able to go to the schools that are near me and don’t have to think about going to an alternative school or online school."
The district responded on Wednesday with a statement: MPS and MFT share many of the same values, including increased mental health support for our students. Our latest offer to the MFT includes having a full-time social worker in every school and lower ratios for social workers and counselors at higher needs schools in the contract. We look forward to reaching an agreement with MFT and getting our students back in their classrooms as soon as possible.