Gov. Newsom Visits Santa Clara County School, Touts Legislation

PALO ALTO, CA — Gov. Gavin Newsom and local political leaders stopped by an elementary school in Palo Alto on Tuesday morning to support a $6.6 billion plan to reopen public schools in the state.

The governor and the state legislature reached a deal this week, and lawmakers are expected to vote on Thursday.

At Barron Park Elementary School, Newsom praised the Palo Alto Unified School District’s reopening strategy. The district reopened under a hybrid model — a mix of in-person and remote learning — last fall for younger students, and starting next week, high schoolers will be able to return to campus.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, schools with “strictly implemented mitigation strategies” have been able to successfully reopen in-person. Newsom said that Palo Alto’s plan is “proving we can get our kids back in school not just here but across the Bay Area.”

“We’re not asserting a point-of-view,” Newsom said. “This point-of-view has been proven since October. Now we're seeing cohorts increasing. … It proves we can do this in other parts of the state.”

But Newsom acknowledged that not every district of the state has the same resources as Palo Alto Unified.

“No one is naive about that,” Newsom said, before pointing to funding that the legislation would provide to schools that reopen for in-person instruction by March 31.

Local state lawmakers state senator Josh Becker and assemblymember Marc Berman, whose districts include Palo Alto, spoke before Newsom and praised the governor’s plan.

“It’s time for us adults to put aside politics and ensure a safe pathway back for teachers and students,” Becker said.

Berman, who grew up in Palo Alto and attended its public schools — later serving on the city council during one of the school district’s suicide clusters in 2014-15 — said he understands the challenges that students are facing during the pandemic.

“We’ve seen the data that during the pandemic our youth are struggling,” Berman said. “Suicide ideation is up, trips to the emergency room are up, and they’re not getting the support that they need by distance learning. So we need to get them back in the classroom as quickly as possible.”

Newsom said that school districts that haven’t yet implemented in-person learning should “give it a shot,” citing funding from the legislation as an incentive and the Palo Alto Unified School District as an example.

“This district has been showing the way,” Newsom said. “We can do this. We can keep our kids safe. We can keep our kids more emotionally healthy.