Alliance Attends “Stay Safe to Stay Open: Schools” Press Conference

Last Wednesday, Waukesha County and our local school districts announced a partnership to provide flexible health and safety guidelines to help schools open safely in the fall. Suzanne Kelley spoke on behalf of the business community to highlight the importance of ongoing collaboration between our businesses and schools as we approach the upcoming school year. Below are Suzanne’s remarks:

“We’re here today on behalf of the business community to support ‘Waukesha County’s Stay Safe to Stay Open: Schools’ campaign. It’s imperative that the business community, our schools, and the community at large at all work together to make the upcoming school year as successful as it can be. When the school year begins in a few weeks, it’s certain to look different than the start of any other school year before. Whether schools reopen in person, virtually, or implement a hybrid model, businesses and their employees will be affected.

If there’s one thing we’ve all learned in the past four months, it is the importance of flexibility and collaboration. Communication, flexibility and patience will help us all get through this challenging time and are critical to the physical and mental health and stability of our children and future workforce.

Educating our youth is an essential industry and huge economic driver today and in the future. Education needs to resume, and needs to do so safely for both students and teachers.

Most businesses are not experts in education or health.  However, the business community has extensive experience in process controls, continuous improvement and sound environmental, health & safety practices in the workplace. Many businesses in essential industries continued to operate safely during the Safer at Home order, and many more businesses have opened since then. Every business has had to implement extensive health and safety protocols, and our schools are committed to doing the same.

County Executive Farrow launched a “Stay Safe to Stay Open” campaign for businesses earlier this summer. As the school year begins, the entire community can do its part to help schools stay safe by following CDC guidelines such as social distancing, staying home if you are sick and using face coverings or masks in public places. We know that keeping our employees, workplaces, students, teachers and schools safe is key to keeping our business and economy flourishing!”