As mid-August approaches and another school year is starting anew, districts across the state and nation are scrambling to establish COVID-19 safety and precaution so teachers, faculty, and students alike can remain as healthy as possible amidst the pandemic. While many things remain uncertain, Alamo Heights ISD Superintendent Dr, Dana Bashara is quoted as calling the first day of school a “great success.” Students went back to school on Monday, August 17th at five AHISD schools and will potentially be on campus in smaller numbers after September 8.
Dr. Bashara explains, “I got to see our teachers pouring their hearts into the students inside their screen, across the screen. I think the day was a success because of all the hard work and pre-planning that went into it,” Dr. Bashara’s school is not the only one in the district to strive for in-person learning. 67% of AHISD have chosen to return to school facilities once they are allowed to begin in-person learning on September 8th. In the meantime, the district will be concocting a way to safely brings students and teachers back together on campus.
“We’re considering a phase-in plan, to bring smaller groups of students, to build confidence in those protocols and in our procedures. Confidence in our families and also in our staff. Bringing smaller numbers in over a two-week period will serve us well.” Says Dr. Bashara. While much of the plan remains unsolidified, families who live in the Alamo Heights district should be able to learn more about the phase-in plan soon.
As the world continues to be animated by a hunger for stability and concrete information that is simply not present amongst the first global pandemic in history, many things remain unknown. However, the AHISD district remains hopeful that they can assemble a safe and thorough plan to allow in-person on campus learning to take place between students and teachers.
