HOULTON, Maine — Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine) traveled to Houlton Middle-High School on Aug. 18, speaking with Superintendent Ellen Halliday and Principal Tim Tweedie on steps to make sure the school can reopen safely amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.
A native of Aroostook County, Collins is also a member of the bipartisan U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, which helps oversee legislation regarding those matters. The committee held several hearings last month to discuss the reopening of schools and colleges for the fall semester.
Part of the issues facing the reopening for Houlton Middle-High School includes many homes not having proper internet access, which may become an issue if a student or teacher has to conduct remote learning in cases of quarantine. Collins stated she was working with Senator Joe Manchin, a Democrat from West Virginia, on introducing legislation to better accommodate rural areas such as Aroostook County which may struggle with these issues.
“It’s a major problem, and the pandemic has made it even more urgent,” said Collins in regard to the digital divide facing rural Americans. “And it affects not only our schools, it affects whether people can work remotely and continue to be employed.”
Houlton Middle-High School, like other schools in Maine, is planning for a full reopening where all students can go back to school and learn in-person. But compared to other states, Maine’s count of COVID-19 cases is relatively much lower, with 100 times as fewer cases as states such as Florida and New York.
Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, echoing sentiments by U.S. President Donald J. Trump, has called for a full reopening of all schools in the United States, even in states with higher case counts or greater population density. Trump himself has even threatened to cut federal funding for schools if they do not fully reopen.
Collins, who voted against DeVos’ appointment to the position at the Senate Confirmation Hearing, said while she agreed that in-person learning was best for children, in some parts of the country the idea of doing so puts too many students and staff members at risk.
Senator Susan Collins, along with Superintendent Ellen Halliday, meets with school teachers, Chris Bossie and Nanette Nickerson-Mills during a tour of Houlton Middle-High School Aug. 18. | Photo courtesy of Sen. Susan Collins’ office
“There’s no doubt in my mind that if you can safely reopen schools that children are better off, both academically and for their social and emotional development,” she said. “But in some parts of the country that is just not possible now, and it is wrong of the administration to threaten to withhold funding for schools that do not fully reopen.”
A senator who has served since 1997 and considered a moderate Republican, Collins is now facing a strong Democratic contender in Maine House Speaker Sara Gideon, who according to recent Bangor Daily News polls is leading Collins by several percentage points. The dip in Collins’ long-standing popularity comes as she has made several controversial votes in the senate, such as voting to acquit President Trump during his impeachment trial, and by voting to confirm Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who was accused of sexual assault by university professor Christine Blasey Ford.
Collins disputed the BDN polls, and stated that her own internal polling put her in a much more advantageous position, but did acknowledge that she was in for a close race with Gideon.
“Our internal polling, which are well balanced and professionally done, shows that I am ahead,” she said. “I believe that I will prevail when people look at my record versus Sara’s record.”
