Local task force to offer guidance on when to allow children back in classrooms

SAN ANTONIO (KTSA News) –  The Texas Education Agency is allowing school districts to delay the reopening of schools without risking state education funding if local public health officials decide to keep them closed because of the pandemic.

“Let me be very clear with you,” Mayor Ron Nirenberg said at Wednesday’s COVID-19 briefing. “Schools are not ready to open in August in person.”

He announced that San Antonio Metro Health has formed a local task force comprised of teachers, parents, students, teachers’ unions, pediatricians, school district officials and public health professionals.  The group is scheduled to meet this week and offer guidance on how long schools should remain closed.

“We’re going to be working to make sure that we can find common ground to stand on with our seventeen school districts, and we’ll be issuing that guidance through our local public health authorities as TEA has required,” said Nirenberg.

The  San Antonio School District superintendent announced this week that he wants to push back the start of the new school year from August 10 to August 17, and the first three weeks will be restricted to remote learning.

Nirenberg said the task force will convene this week and provide guidance as early as next week.

The Texas State Teachers Association on Tuesday demanded that schools provide only remote learning for 9 weeks because of COVID-19.