LIVE NOW
The Netherlands will reopen schools next week despite strict lockdown
From CNN’s Mick Krever
Primary and secondary schools in the Netherlands will reopen next week despite a strict national lockdown, the Dutch government announced on Monday. Higher education, including trade schools and universities, will remain closed for in-person learning.
“Primary schools, secondary schools and schools for special (secondary) education will reopen on January 10, 2022. This also applies to out-of-school care,” the government said in a news release. “According to the OMT [Outbreak Management Team], that is responsible.”
“In vocational education, colleges, and universities, online education will be provided because of an increase in the number of infections in this age category, except for the previously excluded groups," the statement continued.
More context: The government last month said that schools would be closed to in-person learning starting Dec. 20. For primary school students, that meant starting the so-called Christmas vacation a week early.
The Netherlands has been in a strict lockdown since Dec. 19, in an effort to curb the spread of the Omicron coronavirus variant. All hospitality venues and non-essential shops have been closed, the government has advised people to stay at home as much as possible, and has said that people should receive no more than two visitors per day.
New York City teachers’ union concerned about safely staffing schools as Covid-19 cases remain high
From CNN's Kiely Westhoff
The president of one of the largest teachers’ unions in New York City says he is concerned about safely staffing schools this week in the wake of rising Covid-19 cases in the city.
“The issue was we wanted to make sure that each school could have the appropriate staffing to be safe,” said Michael Mulgrew, President of the United Federation of Teachers, in response to why he wanted New York City schools to begin the year remotely. “The last scenario we want is a school being forced to make a decision about combining classes together.”
Mulgrew told CNN’s Jim Sciutto that he wanted to avoid a scenario where there is a high rate of student attendance combined with low staff, resulting in a lower than normal rate of teachers to students.
Only one New York City school closed Monday due to staffing issues. There are more than 1,700 schools in the New York City system – the largest in the country.
Mulgrew said Sunday was a frustrating day for teachers who were trying to get tested because they faced long lines at testing sites.
“The teachers have had a very difficult time trusting government. Let’s just put it that way. So we now have a new mayor. We’ll see where that goes,” Mulgrew said earlier Monday outside The American Sign Language & English Lower School in New York City.
The city distributed 1.5 million Covid test kits as well as KH95 masks to schools over the weekend.
Mulgrew also urged parents to get their children vaccinated. “We need your children vaccinated,” he said. “We need the vaccination rate to go up for our 5 to 11-year-olds.”