The second largest teacher’s union in America was in close contact with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on school reopening guidance, even successfully getting some of its recommendations inserted into the official guidance, newly released records show. The American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and its president, Randi Weingarten, spoke multiple times with top CDC officials in the days leading up to the agency’s Feb. 12 publication of the guidance, according to internal emails (pdf) obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request by Americans for Public Trust, a watchdog group. Weingarten discussed the pending guidance with CDC Director Rochelle Walensky on Feb. 1. A teacher’s union official then emailed a slew of CDC and White House officials, thanking them for the “rich discussion” and expressing hope “that lines of communications will remain open, and that we can serve as a true thought partner as you continue the important …