2025-12-2 Teacher Strike and Calendar

Dear Reader,

Teachers are striking this week - Read-Aloud is cancelled for the rest of the week

The contract mediation between United Teachers of Richmond and school district has failed. Last night the union announced that they will be going on strike on Thursday morning (Dec 4). Richmondside and Richmond Confidential have articles on the situation and the school district has put out a series of statements as updates.

 Read-Aloud is cancelled for the rest of this week (Wed-Fri), or until a resolution is reached.

Communications

We will be trying to communicate with you at least quarterly, again. We are in the process of porting our email service to Google Workspace; emails may have gone astray last month.

Communications - Cont.

Note: to contact the office, please email info@read-aloud.org, to contact Crystal, use crystal@read-aloud.org.

Also, we are occasionally sent mail to our old city hall address. Please send mail to 13857 San Pablo Ave, San Pablo CA 94806, instead.

Read-Aloud Calendar

  • Make-up Zoom Conference, Dec 3 or Jan 7 or Feb 4, 10:30-11:30

  • Read-Aloud resumes after strike: TBA

  • Winter Holiday and Classroom Parties (Read-Aloud Break): Dec 17-Jan 2

  • Read-Aloud Resumes: Jan 5

  • MLK, Jr Day: Jan 19

  • Presidents Week Recess: Feb 16-20

  • School closed - Reserve Day: Mar 27

  • Spring Recess: Apr 6-10

  • Last day of the program year: Mon, May 4

Addressing ICE enforcement

  • WCCUSD policy is to protect students and families on campus from immigration agents, this policy was enacted in 2018.

  • Immigration status is not something that the district has records of for a student or their family, and staff are not supposed to ask about it. This protects the district from being required to hand this data over (they don't have it), and staff from being questioned (they don't know), and students and families from being outed.

  • Over the summer, WCCUSD

    • reaffirmed this goal

    • trained administrators how to deal with ICE agents, judicial warrants and administrative warrants.

    • Staff are now instructed to refer any requests from ICE to the superintendent or a designated district official to “ensure compliance with state law and protection of student’s rights," per the updated policy.

    • The district has also been providing ‘know your rights’ literature to families.

  • I am not aware of any ICE activity in WCCUSD schools so far.

  • It would stand to reason that if ICE agents were being refused access to a school (for an administrative warrant), and a volunteer were trying to enter the campus, staff may not open the door to let them in, to prevent the volunteer from being injured by an agent following them in.

Thank you,

Crystal Merrill, Executive Director

Read-Aloud Volunteer Program, 13857 San Pablo Avenue, San Pablo CA 94806

(510) 237-0735

info@read-aloud.org