President of Key Teachersâ Union Shares Plea: âSchools Must Be Openâ in Fall About half the nationâs schools are not fully open despite rising vaccination levels, and teachersâ unions are getting much of the blame. Randi Weingarten hopes to carve a path forward. Randi Weingarten plans to acknowledge in a speech that âprolonged isolation is harmfulâ to students and that online instruction has negatively affected learning. Credit...Ira Lupu for The New York Times May 13, 2021, 5:00 a.m. ET Randi Weingarten, president of the nationâs second-largest teachersâ union, plans to call on Thursday for a full reopening of the nationâs schools for the next academic year, saying: âThere is no doubt: Schools must be open. In person. Five days a week.â