We hope this letter finds you healthy and safe as we enter July. We want to connect with our teachers and staff as we continue our planning for starting school Aug. 13. We know our new to district teachers and staff will start on Aug. 3 and many of our school-based team members will start on Aug. 6.
For support staff who work a schedule including the summer, we are working with our district’s leaders to create plans for each building so employees start returning to buildings next week, July 13. If this group includes you, your supervisor will be sharing details, procedures, and precautions later this week.
Thank you for your partnership in these uncertain times as we continue to monitor the public health crisis to COVID-19, including the on-going guidance and orders from both the governor and the Texas Education Agency (TEA)’s commissioner.
Based on the rules being set by the state of Texas regarding school funding and our ability to support teachers and school operations, we will be offering families the following two choices for next school year:
100% enrollment in our Virtual Empowered Learning program where teachers will lead both live and self-paced instruction for students; and
100% in-person instruction where we will adhere to the safety and public health guidelines set by our local and national public health agencies, including face coverings, minimizing large gatherings, personal hygiene, contact-tracing, health screenings, and facility sanitization.
Earlier this summer, we were exploring the possibility of a third option for families in middle and high schools to include a “hybrid 50/50” approach, combining in-person and at-home learning. At this time, based on guidance from the state, feasibility, and concerns about teacher workload, we are not pursuing a hybrid 50/50 option.
