Texas students will return to school in person this fall amid coronavirus, state says
Students across Texas’ public schools will return to campuses this fall, Gov. Greg Abbott and Texas Education Agency Commissioner Mike Morath told state lawmakers on a call Thursday morning.
“It will be safe for Texas public school students, teachers, and staff to return to school campuses for in-person instruction this fall. But there will also be flexibility for families with health concerns so that their children can be educated remotely, if the parent so chooses,” Morath said in a statement Thursday.
According to lawmakers on the call, districts will not be required to mandate face masks or test students for COVID-19 symptoms, and virtual components will be available for students and families who may be immunocompromised or have underlying health conditions or concerns.
Rep. Gene Wu, a Democrat from Houston, who tweeted details of the call, wrote Thursday that the agency “will not mandate masking for students, but will allow ISDs to make decisions that are ‘supported by science.’”
A spokesman for TEA confirmed the agency will not mandate masks. Detailed guidance is expected to be released from the agency Tuesday.
John Wittman, a spokesman for Abbott, said Thursday guidelines will include, “both in-person and virtual learning.”
The Fort Worth school district announced Wednesday that students would have the option of returning to the classroom or continuing their learning online in the fall. Spokespeople for the districts of Arlington, Hurst-Euless-Bedford and Northwest said they are waiting on TEA guidance before announcing their plans for the school year.
In preparation for students’ return, TEA announced earlier this month it ordered personal protective equipment, including roughly 50 million disposable masks, 10 million gloves, 40,000 thermometers and 500,000 gallons of hand sanitizer to be distributed to districts across the state.
Rep. Ramon Romero Jr., a Democrat from Fort Worth, said he has serious concerns about the level of spread of the novel coronavirus come fall, as public health experts have predicted the possibility of a resurgence in cases.
“It further concerns me that we haven’t even gotten past the first wave, with cases and hospitalizations steadily rising after the Governor’s opening of the state just a few weeks ago,” Romero wrote. “The number one concern should continue to be the health and safety of Texans as we look toward planning for the next school year.”
Rep. Gina Hinojosa, a Democrat from Austin, wrote in a Facebook post Thursday that, “it is completely premature to make this determination now.”
Hospitalizations and cases of the novel coronavirus have hit all-time highs in Texas in recent weeks. For 10 out of the past 11 days, hospitalizations of COVID-19 patients have broken records, reaching a high of 2,947 COVID-19 patients hospitalized Thursday. Texas also reached new single-day highs this week, with 4,098 COVID-19 cases reported on Tuesday (1,476 of those cases were from Texas Department of Criminal Justice testing that had been previously diagnosed but not reported) and 3,129 on Wednesday. Over 2,000 COVID-19 related deaths have been reported.
Abbott has stressed that the state has an “abundant supply” of hospital beds still available, and has continued to move forward with a phased reopening of businesses.
During a press conference Tuesday, Abbott said he expects students to be back in the classroom this fall, “able to interact with teachers as well as able to interact with other students,” and with the hope that students can participate in sports and other extracurricular activities.
This story was originally published June 18, 2020 at 1:17 PM.
