Running thread of the disaster that is the new school year

[Guest]

3 minutes ago, Message Board User said:

Open the schools. All of them.

6 weeks early?

Edited September 23, 2020 by slorch

[JohnLocke 115]

14 minutes ago, Brisketexan said:

I gotta tell you....while I think they still need to allow some sort of remote option for kids who are particularly vulnerable, or who are regularly in close proximity to someone vulnerable....I'm really leaning more and more towards in-person schooling being the right call, ON BALANCE.  That doesn't mean there aren't cons/risks.  It just means that I think when we take all factors into account, it's looking more like the right call.

Parents/Students will have a choice..

[Message Board User 12395]

The science and data are there (that schools are safe and should be re-opened, 100%, in-person) - we just don't want to follow it.

 

Edited September 23, 2020 by Message Board User

[1978horn 892]

Our district is now hybrid with some students in person and some virtual. We decided to stay virtual to see how the opening goes. We are a week and a half in and I am leaning towards sending them back at the end of 9 weeks(5 virtual while others are in person). We can pull the kids back to virtual at any time, but can’t send them to in person after deciding virtual.

When everyone was virtual both kids were fine, but now that friends are back in person I am starting to see negative side effects with the kids(freshman and 5th). We may pull them virtual the last 2 weeks if we go back so that they can see grandparents at Christmas.

[Hefeweizen 5322]

If they mandate kids back we’re home schooling.  The remote model is working just fine for us in Eanes at WHS.  My kids said the losers are definitely suffering though.  Kind of a rough assessment but that’s teenagers for you.

 

And let me qualify a real asshole statement- if there are special needs, they absolutely should be in school in person.  If they want to be there, they should be able to go back.  But if they mandate a return, fuck that noise.

Edited September 23, 2020 by Hefeweizen
Surly foot in mouth disease

[JohnLocke 115]

Nobody is mandating a return.  The big change today is they are contemplating a return meaning a return to regular school and a regular schedule on 10/5.  Face to face with your actual teachers, instead of virtual school at school. Parents/students can still opt out and go virtual.

[smoky 840]

 But if they mandate a return, fuck that noise.

Not knowing what your circumstance is, but what's your family's metric that it's safe to return face to face?

[Superhero 8830]

My local school district goes back to in-person tomorrow, but only for 2.5 hours from 830-11. Luckily we can walk to school in 5 minutes, otherwise it would be a Chinese fire drill (not racist) during drop-off and pick-ups.

Hopefully they'll go back to school full time. If my son's (private school) kindergarten can figure out how to have the kids full-time, the school should be able to figure it out as well.

 

Kids need to go back to school. Period. We are fortunate to be able to work from home, afford a laptop for my daughter, and provide 3 meals at home. But for lot of the low-income kids, they are a burden to their working parents. They need schools to be their safe havens - to receive proper meals, to have teachers to be observant of possible abuse at home, to keep them engaged and not allow them to fall behind.

This lock down went too far IMO. We could've stayed partially open with full face masks and social distancing. Instead we destroyed the economy and let thousands if not more kids fall through the social cracks, many of whom may not recover. It's honestly sad. While I think the government (all levels) fucked up the initial response to the virus, but there's still time to help the under-privileged catch up and not be a bigger burden to future society.

[JohnLocke 115]

the latest:

I am committed to keeping you informed and aware of decisions that are being made in the district. You may have heard that there were conversations about shifting course regarding the physical return to campus. It's important to me to have conversations with leadership to determine how we best serve our students. I have a responsibility to ensure students receive the highest quality instruction that can be safely provided, and we know that for many students, that means being on-campus, engaging with their peers and teachers. 

However, after consulting with campus leadership and hearing from numerous families and staff, we have determined now is not the time to adjust our plans. Beginning Oct. 5, we will phase in on-campus instruction according to the phase-in plan outlined on our website. 

[Hefeweizen 5322]

1 hour ago, smoky said:

 

 

Not knowing what your circumstance is, but what's your family's metric that it's safe to return face to face?

 

Son is considered high risk, so when Texas Children's says so.

[Brisketexan 105142]

[/url] The science and data are there (that schools are safe and should be re-opened, 100%, in-person) - we just don't want to follow it.

 

 

 

You’re overstating it. It’s not definitively proven - the very source you cited says that “it looks promising.” And it does. But we’re dealing with a novel situation with difficult to wrangle data. So, “looks promising” is where we are. And that’s good. It points toward us continuing to move towards in person schooling, and continue to monitor those results. The data looks good - promising - but don’t overstate it.

[Message Board User 12395]

Cuero ISD suspending online instruction on Oct 9.

[Message Board User 12395]

Open the schools.

One month after thousands of students returned to schools across St. Louis, there have been no coronavirus outbreaks or spikes associated with in-person learning. The initial success has led many school districts to bring students back after starting the year fully online.

“Schools are the cleanest places to be right now, and the healthiest places,” said Jason Sefrit, superintendent of the 4,900-student City of St. Charles School District.

As of Thursday, there have been seven confirmed or probable COVID-19 cases in students and three in staff members in the district, where 65% of students attend school five days a week. Three elementary schools and one middle school haven’t reported any cases since school started Aug. 27.

[Brisketexan 105142]

2 minutes ago, Message Board User said:

Open the schools.

One month after thousands of students returned to schools across St. Louis, there have been no coronavirus outbreaks or spikes associated with in-person learning. The initial success has led many school districts to bring students back after starting the year fully online.

“Schools are the cleanest places to be right now, and the healthiest places,” said Jason Sefrit, superintendent of the 4,900-student City of St. Charles School District.

As of Thursday, there have been seven confirmed or probable COVID-19 cases in students and three in staff members in the district, where 65% of students attend school five days a week. Three elementary schools and one middle school haven’t reported any cases since school started Aug. 27.

"open the schools" - I actually think that a lot of districts are following a wise and defensible approach.  They are sticking their toes in the water, and paying attention to their neighbors who are doing the same.  Then they're getting in waist deep, and then they're going all the way in.  It's cautious, but it's also subject to adjustment as information supports.  That's good decision making.  Yes, it's SOMEWHAT cautious and conservative, but it's striking a reasonable balance.  I actually think that this is a process that is working pretty well, all things considered.  We're getting there.

[smoky 840]

"open the schools" - I actually think that a lot of districts are following a wise and defensible approach.  They are sticking their toes in the water, and paying attention to their neighbors who are doing the same.  Then they're getting in waist deep, and then they're going all the way in.  It's cautious, but it's also subject to adjustment as information supports.  That's good decision making.  Yes, it's SOMEWHAT cautious and conservative, but it's striking a reasonable balance.  I actually think that this is a process that is working pretty well, all things considered.  We're getting there.

I agree, but the endgame should also be communicated. October 5th is the start of the "transition period" in AISD but they haven't really said what we're transitioning towards.

[Covri 6249]

Was scheduled to have my 4 year at the elementary school this morning for a 1st meeting with a woman at the school to do an in person speech evaluation. He has a couple letters he isn’t saying very well and my wife was like the school offers this for free even before they enter kindergarten (next fall for him) so I was like sure go for it. Got a call yesterday that the  woman’s husband tested positive for covid. One day later and my wife and kid could have potentially been exposed to someone whose spouse has it. Feel like we dodged a bullet and shows just how random it can be to catch it. We’ve been super safe and this was one of the few things we decided to do outside our bubble. 

[Message Board User 12395]

1 hour ago, Brisketexan said:

"open the schools" - I actually think that a lot of districts are following a wise and defensible approach.  They are sticking their toes in the water, and paying attention to their neighbors who are doing the same.  Then they're getting in waist deep, and then they're going all the way in.  It's cautious, but it's also subject to adjustment as information supports.  That's good decision making.  Yes, it's SOMEWHAT cautious and conservative, but it's striking a reasonable balance.  I actually think that this is a process that is working pretty well, all things considered.  We're getting there.

I could see how others (and maybe most people) would see this.  I recognize I'm probably an Army of One on this, but when we know kids are falling behind and many will never catch up because of this extended Spring Break/Summer Vacation (not to mention other deleterious effects regarding their social skills and mental Health), but at some point we need to look at the data from Europe and all of the states that have opened up already (without spikes) and realize that we need to get the kids back in school immediately.

Yes, at some point, there will be a K-12 kid who contracts the virus, gets hospitalized, and die.  It will happen somewhere.  But we need to ask ourselves is an IFR of 0.00whatever percent worth the damage that thousands (millions?) of kids are suffering and will suffer because they are falling behind.

I guess I'm glad I live in a city where we had the option of sending our kids to school fulltime; consider Washington DC - a city where the poverty rate is 15-20%.  Their schools are closed until AT LEAST November, and MAYBE in November they'll do some kind of hybrid.

What are DC's covid numbers?

And less than 1% of ER visits in DC are covid-related. 

To me (and again I may be an Army of One), schools shuttered is outrageous, especially with these numbers and especially in that city.  Absolutely outrageous in a city that is majority-minority with a high poverty rate where we can assume maybe...half...not even?...of students are logging in to virtual school.

Will the risk be zero?  Will it ever be zero?  Of course not.  But...well, you know...

[Samson's Wig 3192]

I think you make solid points, but I'm not sure I agree with your premise that kids are suffering irreparable harm.  Public schools, in particular, weren't doing a bang up job of educating kids in the first place - especially those economically disadvantaged kids you referenced.  I'm not so sure that a few months off is going to make a significant difference, statistically, in their outcomes or the outcomes of any other kids.  Most American kids are going to graduate (or drop out early) with the same subpar education that kids did before this pandemic.  And those kids who would have managed to make the most of a public school education will still go on to success in spite of missing a bit of school.  Those who wouldn't have still won't.  The social aspects, mental health aspects, etc. are more concerning, but I fail to see how sitting in a plexiglass cage, wearing a mask, and six feet from your closest classmate solves these issues.

The economic impact, both at the family level and the national one, is a much more tangible reason to get the kids back to school.  I do worry, however, that this push to get them back will only result in a slingshot effect of the kids right back at home, if the experts and history are correct and we're in for a doozy of a second wave this winter. 

The best case scenario is that we take this situation as a wake up call and an opportunity to fix our broken education system, instead of rushing to send kids back to the same shitty situation they were in before Covid broke loose.  What a sad state of affairs that we're all clamoring for things to get back to normal when normal was arguably the biggest failure in our nation's history.

[atomheartbevo 89670]

2 hours ago, smoky said:

3 hours ago, Brisketexan said:

"open the schools" - I actually think that a lot of districts are following a wise and defensible approach.  They are sticking their toes in the water, and paying attention to their neighbors who are doing the same.  Then they're getting in waist deep, and then they're going all the way in.  It's cautious, but it's also subject to adjustment as information supports.  That's good decision making.  Yes, it's SOMEWHAT cautious and conservative, but it's striking a reasonable balance.  I actually think that this is a process that is working pretty well, all things considered.  We're getting there.

I agree, but the endgame should also be communicated. October 5th is the start of the "transition period" in AISD but they haven't really said what we're transitioning towards.

Check your emails and the links they send.   After a few weeks, they are hoping to get to 50%, and then go from there.  The “endgame” is all kids and staff back that they can get, with the acknowledgment that some kids and staff will be online until a widespread vaccine is out there, which will probably be next summer.

[Your Mom 4806]

4 hours ago, Samson's Wig said:

I think you make solid points, but I'm not sure I agree with your premise that kids are suffering irreparable harm.  Public schools, in particular, weren't doing a bang up job of educating kids in the first place - especially those economically disadvantaged kids you referenced.  I'm not so sure that a few months off is going to make a significant difference, statistically, in their outcomes or the outcomes of any other kids.  Most American kids are going to graduate (or drop out early) with the same subpar education that kids did before this pandemic.  And those kids who would have managed to make the most of a public school education will still go on to success in spite of missing a bit of school.  Those who wouldn't have still won't.  The social aspects, mental health aspects, etc. are more concerning, but I fail to see how sitting in a plexiglass cage, wearing a mask, and six feet from your closest classmate solves these issues.

The economic impact, both at the family level and the national one, is a much more tangible reason to get the kids back to school.  I do worry, however, that this push to get them back will only result in a slingshot effect of the kids right back at home, if the experts and history are correct and we're in for a doozy of a second wave this winter. 

The best case scenario is that we take this situation as a wake up call and an opportunity to fix our broken education system, instead of rushing to send kids back to the same shitty situation they were in before Covid broke loose.  What a sad state of affairs that we're all clamoring for things to get back to normal when normal was arguably the biggest failure in our nation's history.

TL;DR. Fuck all those poor kids, they weren't going to do shit in life anyway.  Public school sucks everywhere anyway, why ever go back at all?  

Your post is a steaming pile of horseshit.  Biggest failure in our nations history?  Give me a break.  That's Karen-level hyperbole.  

[HornOnTheBayou 8922]

12 hours ago, Samson's Wig said:

What a sad state of affairs that we're all clamoring for things to get back to normal when normal was arguably the biggest failure in our nation's history.

He's right. Public schools focusing a little too much on standardized testing is just as horrible as slavery, genocide of Native Americans, and the creation of OU (in my opinion, the three worst things to happen in American history).

[Message Board User 12395]

A few more small school districts pulling the plug on distance learning.

And Whitesboro ISD - 

[Knoxtnhorn 5976]

Furk.

I just got sent home.  I'm having some allergy issues which, on the checklist, was enough to send me for a COVID test.  It'll take 3 days.  I mean, I guess it's cool to have a mini-vacation, though, I'll still be teaching from home; however, I hate the added stress it puts on my team.  There's no way a sub will be available, so my students will have to be split between the other grade-level classes.

[NeverMarryAStripper 21907]

What are you doing here if you might be infectious, are you trying to kill us all?

Edited September 30, 2020 by NeverMarryAStripper

[Your Mom 4806]

We’ll dust off the wreath for ya. 

[High Plains Drifter 11049]

 

An eighth grader at my daughter's school reached his limit and decided to go out in style. Apparently he stood up in front of his chromebook camera, dropped trou, and let it hang. Did a little dance, swung it around a little, shook it in the camera.

I guess remote learning just wasn't for him.

[atomheartbevo 89670]

10 hours ago, High Plains Drifter said:

An eighth grader at my daughter's school reached his limit and decided to go out in style. Apparently he stood up in front of his chromebook camera, dropped trou, and let it hang. Did a little dance, swung it around a little, shook it in the camera.

I guess remote learning just wasn't for him.

Damn. I would have been terrified to show my dick in 8th grade.  I think I was maybe 6 inches long back then.

I’m actually surprised we aren’t seeing more shenanigans among that crowd.

[High Plains Drifter 11049]

30 minutes ago, atomheartbevo said:

Damn. I would have been terrified to show my dick in 8th grade.  I think I was maybe 6 inches long back then.

I’m actually surprised we aren’t seeing more shenanigans among that crowd.

 

I would have been skeptical if I hadn't heard it straight from the middle school principal's mouth. I am the announcer at middle school football games, and he's usually up in the booth during the games when he's not walking around busting kids for horsing around or whatever.

 

[Knoxtnhorn 5976]

Covid test negative.  Guess I'm heading back to school tomorrow.  Kind of excited.  I don't like being out unless I truly am feeling sick.  

[South Austin 52508]

1 hour ago, Knoxtnhorn said:

I don't like being out unless I truly am feeling sick.  

Man, you should go work for Initech.

[Guest]

Knox has FOMO towards school?

wow.

[utee94 15823]

So I'm really curious to see what Monday in AISD looks like if those 850 teachers really don't show up.

 

 

[GRHorn 105]

39 minutes ago, utee94 said:

So I'm really curious to see what Monday in AISD looks like if those 850 teachers really don't show up.

 

 

Is that for real? Suck it up, teachers. Ffs. 

[atomheartbevo 89670]

1 hour ago, utee94 said:

So I'm really curious to see what Monday in AISD looks like if those 850 teachers really don't show up.

There's not going to be 850 teachers who tell AISD to fuck off and don't show up.

And a lot of schools have to have multiple teachers per grade teaching virtual as it is, since most of the campuses are limited on students per classroom (elementariness are like 5-7 per classroom or something).  I think my son's second grade has like 17 kids showing up in person, out of around 60+, I think because of the limits.

[utee94 15823]

4 minutes ago, atomheartbevo said:

There's not going to be 850 teachers who tell AISD to fuck off and don't show up.

And a lot of schools have to have multiple teachers per grade teaching virtual as it is, since most of the campuses are limited on students per classroom (elementariness are like 5-7 per classroom or something).  I think my son's second grade has like 17 kids showing up in person, out of around 60+, I think because of the limits.

Oh  I'm sure not all of them will follow through on their pledge.  But what if half of them do?  It'll be interesting to see how it plays out. 

[irishtexan 11519]

8 minutes ago, atomheartbevo said:

There's not going to be 850 teachers who tell AISD to fuck off and don't show up.

And a lot of schools have to have multiple teachers per grade teaching virtual as it is, since most of the campuses are limited on students per classroom (elementariness are like 5-7 per classroom or something).  I think my son's second grade has like 17 kids showing up in person, out of around 60+, I think because of the limits.

There are 8 teachers expected not to show up at my wife's school on Monday. There are 129 schools in AISD. So it wouldn't surprise me one bit if they got close to that many to stay home Monday. Unless AISD drops a fucking hammer today and says "any unexcused absence on the first day of in-person schooling will result in a two-week suspension without pay" as I've seen some other districts do. I guess it's a game of chicken at this point. 

But this does bring up the question of what happens when a teacher gets sick - any kind of sick. There aren't really any subs. Some schools will rely on counselors and special ed teachers to teach classes when teachers are out. But there isn't a plan in place for what to do when there is an unplanned teacher absence. 

[High Plains Drifter 11049]

5 minutes ago, irishtexan said:

There are 8 teachers expected not to show up at my wife's school on Monday. There are 129 schools in AISD. So it wouldn't surprise me one bit if they got close to that many to stay home Monday. Unless AISD drops a fucking hammer today and says "any unexcused absence on the first day of in-person schooling will result in a two-week suspension without pay" as I've seen some other districts do. I guess it's a game of chicken at this point. 

But this does bring up the question of what happens when a teacher gets sick - any kind of sick. There aren't really any subs. Some schools will rely on counselors and special ed teachers to teach classes when teachers are out. But there isn't a plan in place for what to do when there is an unplanned teacher absence. 

 

I imagine hey'll be expected to remote teach from home unless they are really sick. IOW, if they are just quarantining because of possible exposure, or a postive test but no symptoms, they'll still be on the clock.

[irishtexan 11519]

4 minutes ago, High Plains Drifter said:

 

I imagine hey'll be expected to remote teach from home unless they are really sick. IOW, if they are just quarantining because of possible exposure, or a postive test but no symptoms, they'll still be on the clock.

So if you're working from home while sick they can't dock you a sick day, right? Seems like an incentive for those teachers who are uncomfortable returning to the classroom to be sick quite a bit.

I don't think that's realistic, nor very understanding of a population that's been forced into a pretty shitty situation - "hey, you can't get sick. but if you do, you still have to work."

Edited October 2, 2020 by irishtexan

[atomheartbevo 89670]

24 minutes ago, irishtexan said:

There are 8 teachers expected not to show up at my wife's school on Monday. There are 129 schools in AISD. So it wouldn't surprise me one bit if they got close to that many to stay home Monday. Unless AISD drops a fucking hammer today and says "any unexcused absence on the first day of in-person schooling will result in a two-week suspension without pay" as I've seen some other districts do. I guess it's a game of chicken at this point. 

AISD has been working something out with those who teachers that we know, who have health issues where covid could wreck them.  Those with a compromised member in the household - not so much, depending on the school.  Some schools have a lot of kids staying home, so it's not as much of a problem.

At my son's school, there are two resigning, according to the newsletter sent out to the parents.  They moved a shitload of teachers around this week at my kid's school, as more parents opted to send their kids back than they had originally planned for earlier in September.  Teachers with health complications/risks are staying home, those without are coming in, and some grades are having their teachers shuffled, so that there will be teachers in the classroom.

 I am guessing that the two resigning were not able to stay home.

AISD could be canning 200+ teachers and staff as it is, due to the thousands of kids who were completely withdrawn from the district.    So if 800 teachers do some kind of protest walk-out/not show up on Monday, they are running a pretty good risk of being fired.

Edited October 2, 2020 by atomheartbevo

[irishtexan 11519]

Just now, atomheartbevo said:

AISD has been working something out with those who teachers that we know, who have health issues where covid could wreck them.  Those with a compromised member in the household - not so much, depending on the school.  Some schools have a lot of kids staying home, so it's not as much of a problem.

At my son's school, there are two resigning, according to the newsletter sent out to the parents.  They moved a shitload of teachers around this week at my kid's school, as more parents opted to send their kids back than they had originally planned for earlier in September.  Teachers with health complications/risks are staying home, those without are coming in, and some grades are having their teachers shuffled, so that there will be teachers in the classroom.

AISD could be canning 200+ teachers and staff as it is, due to the thousands of kids who were completely withdrawn from the district.    So if 800 teachers do some kind of protest walk-out/not show up on Monday, they are running a pretty good risk of being fired.

At my wife's school there are a lot of teachers that aren't comfortable going back to the classroom, but do not have an underlying health condition deemed to be serious enough to warrant an exemption from returning to in-person teaching. They feel decisions regarding their health and safety, and the health and safety of their family members, were made without their input. Those are the teachers that are staying home. And I get it. But I've had the discussion with my wife arguing that if they're not comfortable with being an essential worker, they should find another job. Dems da breaks.

You're probably right re: layoffs. I would guess those teachers that skip monday move to the front of the list. I just don't see them doing that because they're going to need to hire those teachers back next year when all the kids who withdrew want to come back post-covid. I'd also be curious to know if AISD can take that into consideration, legally, when identifying the people who will be laid off.

[High Plains Drifter 11049]

 

Somebody correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't current teachers' salaries already funded through the end of the year? So any layoff's due to funding shortages won't have to happen until the next school year?

[shadetree 66]

There are 8 teachers expected not to show up at my wife's school on Monday. There are 129 schools in AISD. So it wouldn't surprise me one bit if they got close to that many to stay home Monday. Unless AISD drops a fucking hammer today and says "any unexcused absence on the first day of in-person schooling will result in a two-week suspension without pay" as I've seen some other districts do. I guess it's a game of chicken at this point. 
But this does bring up the question of what happens when a teacher gets sick - any kind of sick. There aren't really any subs. Some schools will rely on counselors and special ed teachers to teach classes when teachers are out. But there isn't a plan in place for what to do when there is an unplanned teacher absence. 

For my youngest child’s class, we have just received assignments but no teaching on the days the teacher is out. 3 times in 8 weeks so far. Very frustrating.

[atomheartbevo 89670]

49 minutes ago, irishtexan said:

They feel decisions regarding their health and safety, and the health and safety of their family members, were made without their input. Those are the teachers that are staying home. And I get it.

They (the districts and teachers) are facing a huge amount of pressure from parents who want the kids back in school.  It's a shitty situation to be in, and God knows little kids don't have the best hygiene.    

My wife is headed back to work at an elementary, although she's somewhat glad of it, since we've all been somewhat cooped up at home since March.

And we are sending our kids back, and just going to take a helluva lot of precautions, since we have an elderly neighbor and some elderly in-laws we are helping out.

It goes back to if everybody, especially the adults, would just wear a fucking mask and wash their hands and not have to crowd into Applebee's, we'd be able to get through this and get more kids and teachers back into the schools.

 

[atomheartbevo 89670]

54 minutes ago, irishtexan said:

You're probably right re: layoffs. I would guess those teachers that skip monday move to the front of the list. I just don't see them doing that because they're going to need to hire those teachers back next year when all the kids who withdrew want to come back post-covid. I'd also be curious to know if AISD can take that into consideration, legally, when identifying the people who will be laid off.

25 minutes ago, High Plains Drifter said:

Somebody correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't current teachers' salaries already funded through the end of the year? So any layoff's due to funding shortages won't have to happen until the next school year?

Sounds like it's pretty quick, since the district would be losing $50 million+

https://www.kxan.com/news/education/more-than-200-austin-isd-staff-members-could-be-laid-off-district-leaders-say/

However, AISD and other districts are pressuring TEA to back off and help the districts out - it's not just AISD that's had a shitload of kids withdraw temporarily.

[BrazilHorn 6607]

What’s provoking getting kids back are the large numbers that have dropped off in terms of enrollment. 5,000 kids in AISD alone. There are going to be cuts regardless and if they keep fumblefucking reopening timelines when all the data thus far (for texas) shows very small % of cases in those schools that have gone full open and only ~5% of those have been confirmed to have been caught in school you will see even more pull out in Jan. 
 

Just stupid. Not a single educator or school board can define what “safe” is to them. 

Edited October 3, 2020 by BrazilHorn

[Brew 3049]

We have had zero new cases the last 2-3 weeks. Some of that is definitely related to  what you don’t know can’t hurt you with asymptomatic carriers I would think. 1300 people on campus and we’re still under 10-15 total cases since the first of August with zero of those cases traced to school exposure. 6 games played in high school football, 8 in middle, middle school and high school soccer playing, volleyball playing, etc. Everything that can be is social distanced, masks required in school and at all events, one way hallways, staggered start times and class changes, cleaning rooms between classes, all classes spread out, etc.

Teachers have had no issues even down into the preschool format. It just hasn’t been that hard to stay out of peoples faces. However, the dumb ass local government lifted the mask mandate this week. That’s got us concerned as up until now we all (government, churches, schools, etc) have been pulling in the same direction. The school is going to make sure to tighten up their procedures but between the lifting of the mask mandate and flu season starting locally it’s going to be interesting.

Public school kids need to be in school though. There is so much more that kids get out of it than what they can get in a Zoom session. There are safe ways to make it happen.

[HornOnTheBayou 8922]

If there is a Watchdogs group on your kid's campus, y'all need to join and volunteer. I'm going up to my son's school tomorrow to help out with a few last-minute projects like marking social-distanced circles in the hallways and sidewalks.

Also, when things return to normal, take a day off work and volunteer at the school. You'll have all the female teachers walking up to you and telling you how excited they are to see you and how important it is for the kids to have strong, male role models. Then you get to stand there and say, "I'm just here to help future generations" as a light shines from the heavens on you, wind blows back your hair, and all the first-year teachers from Texas St fall at your feet. Oh yeah, and also, you get to help the kids or some shit like that.

Edited October 4, 2020 by HornOnTheBayou

[fuggled 576]

https://www.fox4news.com/news/dallas-isd-teacher-passes-away-after-testing-positive-for-covid-19

"The teacher was on staff at Nancy Cochran Elementary School in Oak Cliff.

The district did not release the teacher's name.

Superintendent Dr. Michael Hinojosa sent a letter to parents notifying them of the teacher's death and extending condolences to the family and school community."

[Buzzrock 14920]

On 10/3/2020 at 9:11 PM, HornOnTheBayou said:

If there is a Watchdogs group on your kid's campus, y'all need to join and volunteer. I'm going up to my son's school tomorrow to help out with a few last-minute projects like marking social-distanced circles in the hallways and sidewalks.

Also, when things return to normal, take a day off work and volunteer at the school. You'll have all the female teachers walking up to you and telling you how excited they are to see you and how important it is for the kids to have strong, male role models. Then you get to stand there and say, "I'm just here to help future generations" as a light shines from the heavens on you, wind blows back your hair, and all the first-year teachers from Texas St fall at your feet. Oh yeah, and also, you get to help the kids or some shit like that.

Being a Watchdog is great. You’ll never get more high fives in your life. Then again I’m not sure high fives are allowed right now, but still. 

[utee94 15823]

Yup I've done Watchdogs for years.  The very first time my kindergarten daughter asked me if I'd come to her school to be a "work-dog" I melted and signed up immediately. 

She's now a surly 13-year-old, but I'll always have those memories.