Education
austonia newsletter
Get connected with our daily update
Most viewed
The Austin Independent School Board delayed the school year to Sept. 8 in an early-Friday vote, giving teachers three more weeks to prepare for online learning and the community more time to see a drop in COVID-19 cases before students, faculty and staff return to the classroom.
<p>The first four weeks of classes will be virtual-only for most of the district's 80,100 students, with exceptions made for students who don't have access to the required technology, but the board also voted to ask the Texas Education Agency to allow up to four more - potentially delaying full access to the district's 130 campuses until early November.</p><p>If granted, the board stipulated, the waiver "would serve as a period where students who selected on-campus instruction may return to on-campus learning in phased-in smaller groups." Families were asked to choose between in-person or online, with the option for virtual-only students to switch to on-campus classes after the first grading period.</p><p>The <a href="https://www.facebook.com/austinisd/videos/3284478401646954" target="_blank">Thursday night virtual meeting</a> lasted more than six hours and drew hundreds of community members, teachers and staff who called in to comment, with the vote happening past 3 a.m. on Friday. </p><p>On its agenda documents for the meeting, the district cited "local health conditions," the need for teacher training and the fact that COVID-19 disproportionately affects the Hispanic community, represented by a third of teachers and more than half of the district's students.</p><p>The district said staff and faculty will see no reduction in pay and in most cases, no change in pay schedule. The last day of the school year was pushed to June 3, 2021.</p><p>On Monday, Education Austin, the union representing 3,000 AISD employees, <a href="https://austonia.com/austin-public-schools" target="_self">asked the district to consider pushing back the official first day of school,</a> which Gov. Greg Abbott said was within the rights of local districts, not health officials.</p><p>AISD posted <a href="https://go.boarddocs.com/tx/austinisd/Board.nsf/files/BS63YY0936A1/%24file/Attachment%203%20SY-2020-21-Attendance-and-Enrollment.pdf" target="_blank">this document</a> with frequently asked questions, updated July 30, about attendance, enrollment, class size and more during the upcoming school year.</p>
From Your Site Articles
- Austin public school teachers, staff union pushes for delay - austonia ›
- AISD union wants schools to delay first day to avoid virus, help ... ›
- Austin teens face unique challenges in high school decision - austonia ›
- Austin ISD considers delaying first day of school - austonia ›
Related Articles Around the Web
Keep Reading
Show less
Austin Mayor Adler talks COVID, inequity, homelessness and policing in 'State of the City' address
05 August
(City of Austin)
Austin Mayor Steve Adler delivered his annual "State of the City" address Wednesday—virtually.
This story has been updated to include quotes from the mayor's speech.
Austin Mayor Steve Adler delivered his annual "State of the City" address Wednesday evening, in which he discussed the coronavirus pandemic, police funding, the local economy, homelessness, transit and equity issues.
<p>Usually delivered to a crowd at City Hall, tonight's address was—as are all things Council these days—virtual.</p><p>"This could have been a speech only about COVID-19," Adler said. Instead, much of his 25-page address focused on the opportunities presented in this moment. </p><p>"Perhaps only at times such as these, where our routines and inertia are so utterly disrupted, can we be freed and forced to dream and act big," he said. "So let's do big things. Let's end homelessness. Let's bring real mobility to Austin. Let's reimagine how we keep one another safe. Let's address race and do something about correcting centuries of injustice because it is the fundamental injustice that fuels so many others." </p><p>Below are some quotes, excerpted from a transcript shared in advance. </p><p><strong>On the coronavirus</strong> </p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"We all want the local economy—and our lives—back as we knew them. But the governor's decision to reopen before we had sufficient testing and tracing in place and before our numbers were low enough compounded the challenge. … Truth is, the virus was never gone. <a href="https://austonia.com/testing-asymptomatic-austin" target="_blank">It just hides</a>, waiting for us to invite it back into our lives." </p><p><strong>On the economy</strong></p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"Unemployment is at unimaginable levels. Businesses have shuttered - some temporarily and some lost forever. Many of our neighbors don't know how they're going to feed their families or whether they'll be evicted from their homes. Tenants struggle with rent; homeowners and landlords struggle with mortgage payments. Our hospitality and creative workers and industries, so great a part of our economy, are reeling. For many, it's already too late." </p><p><strong>On homelessness</strong> </p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"To the people <a href="https://austonia.com/austin-texas-homeless-petition" target="_blank">that signed on to the petition</a> because they were desperate for a solution for people experiencing homelessness, I want to say that I share your impatience. Having chosen this more just path, though, and having rejected the false promise of cosmetic fixes, our work is incomplete unless we follow through with the commitment to house the homeless. This will require us to do a better job of inclusively managing shared public spaces." </p><p><strong>On transit</strong> </p><p style="margin-left: 40px;">"Project Connect is <a href="https://austonia.com/transportation/project-connect-austin" target="_blank">a bold transit plan</a> for the just and accessible city we aspire to be. It certainly addresses traffic, but it will do so much more. … Project Connect will connect our entire city, creating new opportunity for Austinites, reducing our dependence on expensive personal vehicles, and save lives." </p><p><strong>On police funding</strong> </p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"I want to address police department leadership. … We need not only an openness to consider change but a keen desire to move past the status quo and to look at public safety more broadly than [ever,] mainly focusing on ensuring we're best equipped to deal with unsafe moments when they occur. We need more than just a willingness to accept change <a href="https://austonia.com/austin-city-council-police-policy" target="_blank">if it happens</a>; we need a champion for change at its best."</p><p><span></span>Want to read the whole speech? Here's the transcript. </p><p class="pdf-loader"><a class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="bdab21c224a6f214f9ee5a4066743481" href="https://roar-assets-auto.rbl.ms/documents/6988/SOTC 2020 FINAL.pdf">SOTC 2020 FINAL.pdf</a></p><p>Make it a game! Adler invited residents to use this bingo card to mark off every topic mentioned in the speech. Can you get to bingo? Share it on social media with #ATXSOTC.</p><p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image">
<img class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="6b0e4c3e305d794e5a8d90586202a727" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" id="99d54" type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yMzUzNzU2OC9vcmlnaW4ucG5nIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY1Njg4NTY1NH0.wzAmDm1N9F0NflybdxcR9O5shzZ_8EsH-H8Dhs40ywM/img.png?width=980"/>
<small class="image-media media-photo-credit" placeholder="Add Photo Credit...">(City of Austin)</small></p>
From Your Site Articles
- Transportation - austonia ›
- This was the year for Project Connect in Austin. Then came ... ›
- Video shows 'massive problems' with homeless camp in Austin ... ›
- Austin's high-rise dwellers say density is not a problem ... ›
- Divorced Austin parents: COVID amplifies child custody fight - austonia ›
- Without restaurants, bars or festivals, Austin's cottage industry of ... ›
- Austin mayor issues new orders amid COVID-19 surge - austonia ›
- Austin city clerk invalidates homelessness petition - austonia ›
Related Articles Around the Web
Keep Reading
Show less
Austin Public Health to expand testing amid plateau, urges vigilance ahead of school start
05 August
(Texas MedClinic)
Austin Public Health testing
Austin Public Health is expanding its free testing service to residents without symptoms due to a drop in demand as cases plateau.
<p>"As a result, we are going to lower the threshold for testing which will allow some asymptomatic testing to occur again," Austin-Travis County Interim Health Authority Dr. Mark Escott said Wednesday. </p><p>APH is also considering <a href="https://austonia.com/austin-rapid-covid-19-test" target="_self">offering rapid antigen testing</a>. Unlike the genetic tests APH already offers, which detect active infections but can take days to return results, antigen tests identify those infections in 15 minutes. </p><p>Some private sites, including Remedy and Total Men's Primary Care locations, already offer rapid antigen testing. Escott said the decline in demand for testing at APH's sites could be because more residents are seeking them out. </p><p>"If we can increase our availability of rapid testing, it allows us to differentiate those positive cases sooner and allows us to do those case investigations sooner," Escott said. "It really would be more effective at the 'boxing-it-in' strategy, particularly as we see case numbers decline."</p><p>APH is working with its testing contractors to see if they have the equipment and capacity necessary to provide rapid testing to city residents. </p><p>APH officials emphasized that while residents are staying vigilant when it comes to masking and socially distancing in public, they must use similar caution at home, such as by avoiding family gatherings, in order to push past the current plateau and avoid any future bounce. </p><p>"We are seeing more cases that are connected to individuals having parties with family and friends," APH Director Stephanie Hayden said. "Please make good decisions so you don't cause an increase in COVID-19 cases."</p><p><strong>What does this mean for schools?</strong></p><p>The decision on when to reopen schools for in-person class is affected by whether Austinites heed this advice, Escott said. Otherwise, schools could face a second round of closures shortly after they welcome students back. </p><p>Area school districts are going mostly or entirely virtual through early September, although the Austin ISD board of trustees is meeting on Thursday to vote on whether to <a href="https://austonia.com/first-day-of-school-austin" target="_self">delay the first official day of school to Sept. 8</a> and, potentially, delay most in-person instruction for up to eight weeks after that.</p><p>"We don't want to be in a situation where we're turning schools on and turning them off in a repetitive cycle for the next six months or a year," Escott said. "Certainly if we are in a <a href="https://www.austintexas.gov/sites/default/files/files/Health/Risk-Based-Guidance%20Eng-v14.pdf" target="_blank">Stage 2</a><a href="https://www.austintexas.gov/sites/default/files/files/Health/Risk-Based-Guidance%20Eng-v14.pdf" target="_blank"></a> by Sept. 8, it will put us in a much better situation to reopen schools and keep them open."</p><p>Escott said he is concerned about high school and college sports, specifically the University of Texas-Austin, which is expected to host football games with 25% of the stadium's 100,000 person capacity. </p><p>"If we have a football game on Sept. 5 with 25,000 people, then by Sept. 19, we're going to be closing schools again, and kids are going to be learning virtually," Escott said. </p>
From Your Site Articles
- Austin officials say COVID-19 testing remains a challenge - austonia ›
- Free COVID-19 testing for Austin protesters—no symptoms required ›
- Austin to stop giving COVID-19 tests to asymptomatic - austonia ›
- Austin sees COVID-19 testing shortages, delayed results - austonia ›
- Austin Public Health limits COVID testing amid surge - austonia ›
- Travis County sees largest COVID increase as thousands seek free ... ›
Related Articles Around the Web
Keep Reading
Show less
Austin ISD considers delaying first day of school, extending virtual classes
The Austin Independent School Board is considering pushing back the first day of school to Sept. 8 and applying for eight weeks of virtual-only classes, citing "local health conditions" and the fact that COVID-19 disproportionately affects Hispanics, who represent a third of teachers and more than half of the district's students.
<p>The moves will be voted on in a special meeting called for 9 p.m. Thursday night. The meeting, which will be held virtually, will include a <a href="https://go.boarddocs.com/tx/austinisd/Board.nsf/Public" target="_blank">public comment portion</a> at 9:35 p.m. The vote will happen after the public comments. </p><p>The meeting agenda cites the following local health conditions:</p><ul class="ee-ul"><li>High COVID-19 numbers in Travis County (averaging 367 new cases per day in July 2020)</li><li>Current Austin Public Health Risk Guidance places Austin, Travis County in Stage 4</li><li>3-4 people of 1000 are estimated to be infected with a current multiplier of 3</li><li>COVID-19 disproportionately impacts the Hispanic population in the Austin-Travis County area. Some 34 percent of the Austin population is Hispanic, while 57 percent of hospitalizations are among Hispanic patients. Thirty-two percent of AISD staff and 56 percent of students identify as Hispanic, according to agenda documents. </li></ul><p>"This delay will allow for our community to adjust to the latest in-person requirements in the changing health conditions of our city with safety at the forefront of every decision," reads the agenda item on the vote. </p><p>In addition, AISD will limit in-person attendance for the first four weeks of school as already planned but vote Thursday on <a href="https://go.boarddocs.com/tx/austinisd/Board.nsf/Public" target="_blank">whether to ask the state for a waiver </a>to allow an additional four weeks, delaying full access to on-campus instruction through early November. </p><p>Students without access to technology will still be allowed in-person instruction, as per state guidelines, but full access by all students would be delayed if the board approves the action and the state allows it. </p><p>"In the event a board extends the initial four-week transition, at least some on campus instruction must be provided each day during the extended transition period," the agenda reads. </p><p>On Monday, Education Austin, the union representing 3,000 AISD employees, <a href="https://austonia.com/austin-public-schools" target="_self">asked the district to consider pushing back the official first day of school,</a> which Gov. Greg Abbott said was within the rights of local districts, not health officials. </p><p>AISD posted <a href="https://go.boarddocs.com/tx/austinisd/Board.nsf/files/BS63YY0936A1/%24file/Attachment%203%20SY-2020-21-Attendance-and-Enrollment.pdf" target="_blank">this document</a> with frequently asked questions, updated July 30, about attendance, enrollment, class size and more during the upcoming school year. </p><p><a href="https://go.boarddocs.com/tx/austinisd/Board.nsf/Public" target="_blank">Click here</a> to find out more and learn how to participate in the public comment portion of the meeting. </p>
From Your Site Articles
- Austin couple matches teachers to education pods - austonia ›
- Students with disabilities in the online school debate - austonia ›
- Austin schools may consider staged reopening due to COVID ... ›
- AISD union wants schools to delay first day to avoid virus, help ... ›
- Austin ISD to vote on delaying first day of school - austonia ›
- Austin ISD delays first day of school to Sept. 8, with online only possible through early Nov. - austonia ›
Related Articles Around the Web
Keep Reading
Show less
Gov. Greg Abbott stresses local school officials "know best" whether schools should reopen
04 August
Gov. Greg Abbott stresses local school officials "know best" whether schools should reopen
By Patrick Svitek, The Texas Tribune
Gov. Greg Abbott stressed Tuesday that only local school boards, not local governments, have the power to decide how to open schools this fall during the coronavirus pandemic.
<p>"The bottom line is the people who know best ... about that are the local school officials," <a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2020/08/04/texas-greg-abbott-coronavirus-press-conference/" target="_blank">Abbott said during a news conference in San Antonio,</a> echoing a message he's been relaying in response to questions about the process.</p><p>Texas educators and parents have been confused about who has the power to keep school buildings closed. They have also been frustrated by conflicting messages from state and local leaders.</p><p>Abbott also said that in preparation for the new school year, the state has already distributed to schools more than 59 million masks, more than 24,000 thermometers, more than 565,000 gallons of hand sanitizer and more than 500,000 face shields. He promised schools "will have their [personal protective equipment] needs met at no cost" to them, with the state picking up the tab.</p><p>In general, he described the state's personal protective equipment levels as bountiful even as the state faces an "an even greater strain" on the supply due to the coming school reopenings and flu season.</p><p>Abbott and other state leaders have backed a legal opinion from Attorney General <a href="https://www.texastribune.org/directory/ken-paxton/" target="_blank">Ken Paxton</a> that prohibits local health authorities from issuing blanket school closures for all schools in their jurisdiction before the academic year begins. Local school boards can decide to keep schools closed to in-person learning for up to eight weeks, with the possibility to apply for waivers to remain shuttered beyond that timeframe.</p><p>Under the state's guidance, local health officials can only intervene if there is an outbreak once students return to campus, at which point they can temporarily shut down a school.</p><p>Abbott stressed Tuesday that the policy does not mean that local health authorities are cut out of the reopening process, saying local school boards are free to consult with the health experts.</p><p>"Nothing is stopping them from doing that, and they can fully adopt whatever strategy the local public health authority says," Abbott said.</p><p>The state's guidance has overruled orders from local health authorities to keep schools closed to in-person learning for certain periods. For example, Metro Health in Bexar County had ordered schools to remain virtual until Sept. 7.</p><p>As for the personal protective equipment for schools, the Texas State Teachers Association said it was not nearly enough.</p><p>"The governor's optics today on PPE is a drop in the bucket, compared to what will be needed if schools are forced to reopen before it's safe," the union's president, Ovidia Molina, said in a statement. "59.4 million masks are roughly 11 masks per student. That might get students through the first week of school."</p>
From Your Site Articles
- Austin couple matches teachers to education pods - austonia ›
- Austin parents weigh return to school without clear guidance ... ›
- Austin ISD delays in-person school for 3 weeks - austonia ›
- Austin public school teachers, staff union pushes for delay - austonia ›
- Students with disabilities in the online school debate - austonia ›
- Austin teens face unique challenges in high school decision - austonia ›
- Austin ISD should delay school or risk 40-1,000 deaths - austonia ›
- Austin health authority delays school reopening - austonia ›
Related Articles Around the Web
Keep Reading
Show less
Alexey Novikov - stock.adobe.com
The University of Texas-Austin plans to test up to 5,000 people on campus each week for COVID-19 using "a strategic, scientific-based approach" that includes rapid results, contact tracing and community testing, officials said Tuesday.
<p>The university is relying on in-house testing for faculty, students and staff to reduce the pressures on commercial labs in the community, according to <a href="https://president.utexas.edu/messages-speeches-2020/covid-19-testing-for-fall-semester" target="_blank">an email from Interim President Jay Hartzell to the UT community.</a></p><p>The goal is to test at least 5,000 members of the campus community every week in order to contain the spread of the virus once school starts, he said.</p><p>Symptomatic students will get tests at University Health Services, which provides medical care and patient education to students. Faculty and staff will be tested at the UT Health Austin clinic at Dell Medical School.</p><p>"We will have the capacity to test hundreds of symptomatic students each day using in-house labs," Hartzell said. "Additionally, we have ordered three rapid testing machines that will allow for approximately 100 tests per day with a 15-minute turnaround time for results."</p><p>UT has enlisted the help of Dell Medical School and Austin Public Health to help with contact tracing for those who test positive for coronavirus.</p><p>School officials have also established the UT Proactive Community Testing Program to test asymptomatic individuals at no cost and monitor spread within the community.</p><p>"Our success as a university begins and ends with the health of our community," Hartzell said. "While we continue to pursue our teaching and research missions, we must also do our best to limit the presence of COVID-19 on the Forty Acres. This starts with robust and rigorous testing, but also includes our individual actions as community members and our adherence to vital requirements for <a href="https://t.e2ma.net/click/73cmvd/bz3qaz/bj37a6" target="_blank">self-quarantining, daily symptom screening, wearing face masks</a>, <a href="https://t.e2ma.net/click/73cmvd/bz3qaz/rb47a6" target="_blank">hand hygiene</a>, social distancing and other key safety measures."</p>
From Your Site Articles
- University of Texas at Austin will require masks in campus buildings ... ›
- Texas A&M, University of Texas systems expect to reopen in the fall ... ›
Related Articles Around the Web
Keep Reading
Show less
(Pexels)
The union representing Austin Independent School District employees wants the schools to delay the first day of school, arguing that teachers need more time to learn how to teach their online classes effectively.
<p>The move would also give the community more time to stem the spread of the coronavirus before the state requires schools to start offering in-person classes, said Ken Zarifis, director of Education Austin, which represents 3,000 AISD teachers and employees.</p><p>Austin schools are set to start on Aug. 18 with virtual classes only. Schools across the state are given up to eight weeks to limit in-person instruction before they must start offering in-person instruction as an alternative for any family who wants to return to the classroom—or risk losing funding from the state if they don't have the approval to continue online only, according to <a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2020/07/31/greg-abbott-texas-schools-reopening/" target="_blank">recent rules</a> issued by the Texas Education Agency. </p><p>Schools do have the freedom to set their own official start dates, Gov. Greg Abbott <a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2020/07/31/greg-abbott-texas-schools-reopening/" target="_blank">has said</a>.</p><p>The union wants to see the official school start date moved to Sept. 8, both to let the virus subside and to give school teachers time to learn how to best serve students in virtual classes, Zarifis said. </p><p>"You have teachers that don't even know how to operate a Google doc, wouldn't even know how to videotape themselves for online instruction," he told Austonia. "It goes from that basic too much more complicated issues. Then you've got people who are completely adept at this, that know how to do it, and they could be training people on their own campus virtual. This is not happening." </p><p>Requiring in-person classes disproportionately affects families of color, he said.</p><p>The union also wants schools to delay in-person classes entirely until there have been no new virus cases in the community for at least two weeks. </p><p>The entire list of demands, which also include universal school safety guidelines, canceling STAAR and other related assessment tests, and guaranteeing 100% pay for all employees regardless of whether they choose to work from home, <a href="https://educationaustin.org/news/reopening-demands/" target="_blank">can be viewed here.</a></p>
From Your Site Articles
- TEA will allow schools eight weeks of virtual instruction - austonia ›
- Austin couple matches teachers to education pods - austonia ›
- Austin ISD to offer classes entirely in-person or online - austonia ›
- Austin ISD delays in-person school for 3 weeks - austonia ›
- Austin ISD should delay school or risk 40-1,000 deaths - austonia ›
- Texas students will return to public schools this fall, governor says ... ›
- Austin public school teachers, staff union pushes for delay - austonia ›
- Austin ISD considers delaying first day of school - austonia ›
- Austin ISD to vote on delaying first day of school - austonia ›
- Austin ISD delays first day of school to Sept. 8, with online only possible through early Nov. - austonia ›
Keep Reading
Show less
(Travel with me/Shutterstock)
The University of Texas updated its fall 2020 plans, requesting students self-quarantine for 14 days before returning to campus, and stating that football games will be held with the stadium at 25% capacity.
<p>Interim President Jay Hartzell tweeted a memo on the <a href="https://president.utexas.edu/messages-speeches-2020/fall-2020-planning-update-july-29?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=UTAustinSocial" target="_blank">university's updated reopening policies</a>, which include a request that students self-quarantine for 14 days before arriving on campus. The update comes a month after UT released its <a href="https://austonia.com/education/university-of-texas-fall" target="_self">initial fall 2020 plans</a>.</p><p>The updated plans also states that football games will be held at 25% capacity, a stark revision to previous plans for the <a href="https://austonia.com/sports/ut-football-will-play-with-stands-at-50-capacity" target="_self">stadium to be filled to 50%</a> capacity.<br/></p><p>Just hours before UT released its updated plans, a <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/07/28/us/covid-19-colleges-universities.html" target="_blank">survey from the New York Times</a> found that UT has the highest number of coronavirus cases among public universities, citing 449 cases among UT students, faculty and staff. University spokesperson J.B. Bird said the Times survey does not show the full picture, calling some of the gaps "egregious." </p><p>"The Times survey shows how well different universities track and report cases, (but) it is not an accurate comprehensive comparison of universities," Bird said in an email. "That's because hundreds of colleges did not respond to the Times request for data and do not post public COVID numbers, as the article notes."</p><p>UT's coronavirus dashboard shows <a href="https://coronavirus.utexas.edu/#ut-covid-19-testing-dashboard" target="_blank">456 cases since March 1</a>, with 287 student cases and 169 cases among faculty and staff.</p>UT ranked ninth among Big 12 schools with coronavirus cases in student athletes, the survey found. <a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2020/06/18/coronavirus-university-texas-football/" target="_blank">Thirteen UT football players tested positive</a> in June.<p><br/></p><p><em>This article has been updated with the university's new plans.</em><br/></p>
From Your Site Articles
- UT Austin releases fall semester plan - austonia ›
- 64% chance peak COVID-19 has already passed in Texas, UT ... ›
- Poll Results: Majority would not attend a UT football game - austonia ›
Related Articles Around the Web
Keep Reading
Show less
