AUSTIN, Texas — On June 1, school districts across the state can reopen to students for summer school, but some Central Texas districts plan to stick with virtual learning. Austin ISD, Round Rock ISD, Leander ISD and Hays CISD are keeping summer school online.
"We started registration last week and summer school itself starts in 12 days. Logistically, we would not be able to convert online summer school to in-person summer school by June 1. We do, however, appreciate the flexibility the governor's guidelines give districts across the state," said officials with Hays CISD.
"There will be opportunities for students in Pre-K to 12 to continue engaging in learning and make up any grades that may be graded as incomplete during the continuous learning period," said Austin ISD officials.
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The Texas Education Agency said school systems may consider prioritizing on-campus summer school for kids with academic gaps, students with disabilities or homeless students. No more than 11 kids can be in an enclosed area at a time.
The TEA said in its guidelines that there shouldn't be assemblies, field trips nor other group gatherings. Indoor sports, playing wind instruments and choir also shouldn't be allowed. The guidelines show teachers and staff need to self-screen and kids should be pre-screened.
TEA suggests temperatures have to be taken and there should be supervised handwashing. It said, where possible, dividers should be placed on desks if they can serve the purpose of shielding students, teachers and staff from respiratory droplets with which they might otherwise come into contact.
The guidelines show campuses should apply more frequent cleaning practices, including additional cleaning by janitorial staff, as well as provide the opportunity for children to clean their own spaces before and after they are used, in ways that are safe and developmentally appropriate.
Some organizations, like the YMCA of Austin, are taking the leap to welcome kids in person for camp sometime in June. Dr. Joan Altobelli, the YMCA Austin vice president of licensed child care, said they've had childcare centers open for essential workers for a while now and they feel ready.
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"We already have the knowledge of meeting the children outside of the building, taking their temperature, asking their parents any questions: Have you been around anyone with a fever or symptoms? Have they been around anyone who has been identified as positive for the virus," said Altobelli.
Altobelli said for the past month they've been preparing for this and they've learned the guidelines, which are similar to what they've already implemented for their child care for essential workers. She said their staff and kids have masks on, and when kids go inside the YMCA, the child goes straight to the room where they'll stay the whole day.
"We know exactly which child's been in contact with which adult and which other children," said Altobello. "Everybody has their own space and materials to use. I just feel that we can continue to do a good service for the camp experience and I know the workers. They really want to get back to work and feel trust. They have to have peace of mind."
KVUE also spoke with folks with the Dog Alliance summer camp, and they're just going to keep things virtual for kids. Normally, they have kids bring their dogs to camp and they learn how to do tricks, teach them to go to agility courses, learn about dog care and do crafts.
"For each camp, we send a short list of items they need to collect from their house, like pillows, or a broomstick, Dixie cups, " said Krakar. "They have their dog there, we do Zoom and we only have five students at a time so that the instructor can watch each child and their dog. We do projects."
Krakar said they're going to adapt to the changes caused by the pandemic and they've already done a few weeks of online camp. She said she's worked with her staff for 10 to 12 years and she doesn't feel like she can keep them safe with in-person camp.
"It's sad that we can't do it, but we also don't want anyone to be sick, so we're glad that we can do this online version. You know, it's not quite as fun as being there in person, but it teaches the dogs and it engages the kids," said Debbi Krakar, Dog Alliance executive director.
Austin ISD and Round Rock ISD canceled their summer camps.
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