The global COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound impact on our lives, one that we’ll not soon forget.

While we don’t yet know in full the impacts of COVID-19 that will no doubt present challenges for the foreseeable future, one thing that we do know for certain is that educators have gone above and beyond for their students during these unprecedented times.

Also read: POINT | COVID response forsakes Colorado’s kids

Back in March, a public education system that was already short of resources, staff and underfunded by more than $8 billion before the pandemic, quickly pivoted from in-person to remote learning to help stop the spread of the coronavirus. Teachers abruptly changed their plans with no remote learning training and no significant support.

In addition to their academic and social-emotional development, many students rely on school for their daily meals and physical and mental health needs. Similarly, parents and family members also rely on schools, but for economic reasons, allowing them to work while their children are at school. One thing that has been realized, if not reaffirmed, during the pandemic is that public schools serve a multitude of purposes beyond the typical scope of education.

As schools closed down to in-person learning last spring, educators worked to address and respond to the inequities that existed long before COVID-19, serving on the front lines to ensure students received access to free meals and Wi-Fi.

As the start of the 2020-21 school year approached, educators were forced to plan for various scenarios, including in-person, remote and hybrid learning. Despite seeing other frontline workers, such as first responders, medical personnel, grocery workers and those in the meat packing industry fall ill, educators shouldered the risk and returned to school, many doubling their workload to teach both in-person and remote students.

Teaching is a highly skilled, knowledge-based profession, and there isn’t an infinite supply of educators ready to fill in for those who are sick or quarantined. Unfortunately, we continue to learn of teachers across the country who have lost their lives due to COVID-19.

In spite of all of this, educators remain focused on ensuring that learning is effective and impactful for their students – no matter if it’s in person, remote or a combination of the two – through the remainder of the school year and beyond.

Teachers are producing multiple lesson plans for each class to make sure they are fulfilling each student’s needs across the various learning environments. They are working to comply with the various requirements for Individualized Education Programs (IEP), 504 evaluations, English as a Second Language (ESL), gifted and talented programs and combinations of two or more of these categories in every class. 

With no training, they have had to become information technology (IT) experts and troubleshooters and have had to completely revamp their curriculum to ensure it is captivating enough that students will want to turn their computers on and remain engaged despite the numerous distractions while learning from home.

The public school system in Colorado has proven itself to be a foundational part of our society, and like teachers, it continues to be expected to do more with less. It’s no secret that teachers would prefer to be in their classrooms with their students, but that cannot happen until communities see their COVID-19 positivity rates drop to levels that would guarantee the health and safety of both students and educators. Until then, educators will continue to go above and beyond, taking the lead so that every student thrives.

Kevin Vick is a high school history teacher, parent and vice president of the Colorado Education Association.