Gov. Greg Abbott announced June 18 that students would be returning to public schools. However, individual districts will decide how it will be implemented.
GISD Executive Director of Communications Melinda Brasher said the district is still unsure of how next school year will play out. On June 19, GISD released a survey to staff, students and parents by email to get input on how they would like to see the upcoming school year take place. Stakeholders have until July 3 to complete the survey.
“We started to work on some options to return to school, and we of course are waiting for some TEA guidance like everybody else, [but] I want people to know that if we make a decision toward a certain way that it was made based on input from our community,” Brasher said.
According to the guidance released by the TEA, remote learning can still be an option for school districts, parents and teachers; it just cannot be the only option. Students will be able to record their attendance through either on-campus or virtual instruction, and parents will be allowed to request that their child be offered virtual instruction.
Districts are also encouraged to have students wear face masks or shields when developmentally appropriate, it said.
Once the results are in, Brasher said the district will work through options and release at least some definitive answers on the approaching school year by mid-July. At that point, she said the district will likely reach out to parents on how they want to approach schooling for the individual child, as far as attending in person or not, which will then impact schedules and plans.
“I don’t know of a school district around here that is not looking at multiple options so that families have choice and that staff have choice,” Brasher said. “So when we get that feedback, we will share that and use that to inform our decisions for the fall.”
