DSISD stays on course with on-campus return date

Students will return to campus on September 14, for those families who selected this option, following the first four weeks of virtual learning district-wide. The district already has one week behind them as school started on August 18. The Texas Education Agency gave school districts the ability to extend the first four weeks of remote only learning by an additional four weeks. This option was discussed amongst the school board at its August 24 meeting. No action was taken, as DSISD Superintendent Todd Washburn made the recommendation to proceed with the current plan of having students return on campus September 14 and the board did not choose to vote for an extension.

His recommendation considered several factors: having enough personal protective equipment (PPE), recent guidance (such as from TEA), current pandemic data, input from health officials and more.

“We do feel confident that we have that PPE and materials, supplies and equipment necessary to open schools on our predetermined September 14 timeframe,” Washburn said.

The news settles well for DSISD parents like Shanda Deleon. “Virtual learning has been really tough. For me, for my kids, for our family in general,” she said. Deleon joined other parents in front of the DSISD Admin building on Monday evening to protest against the possibility of an extension. Deleon said it’s frustrating to see other districts that are currently offering on campus learning.

“We considered withdrawing our kids from Dripping Springs and enrolling in Wimberley because we knew the elementary schools at least we're going to start back in person,” she said. Deleon chose not to withdraw however, because of the admiration for her first grader’s teacher.

“My older daughter had her as a first grade teacher. She won teacher of the year that year. She’s phenomenal and she’s really one of the only reasons we’ve hung in there and said well, we’ll stick out these four weeks virtual, so that we can come back to what I know is great in Dripping Springs,” she said.

Of course, not every parent was against an extension. The school board spent more than an hour reading and listening to public comments, most of which expressed how families felt about a possible extension. One of the comments by a parent in favor of an extension stated that “it’s not your job to heal stressed marriages or help parents navigate work-life balance with their employers during this pandemic. It is not your job to be swayed by non-scientists and non-public health experts or threats of litigation and unenrollment. Do I want my children to return to in-person school? Absolutely. Do I think the district is prepared to safely and effectively offer that beginning September 14? Absolutely not.”

After listening to all the public comments, the majority of which were in favor of on-campus learning resuming September 14, DSISD Board Vice President Barbara Stroud noted that it speaks to the type of education that DSISD provides. “I think it’s absolutely a testament to the quality of all of our administrators, all of our principals, all of our teachers and educators to the quality of education that you provide to our students that we heard such passion from parents about how anxious they are to get their kids back in our schools.”

DSISD Board President Carrie Kroll told the board that she was not opposed to an extension.

“I think I’m in the minority of board members, that I would vote to extend for an additional four weeks, but I’m not going to ask for a vote if there’s not support for that,” Kroll said.

“We learned a lot tonight from families that don’t feel comfortable with the masking. I don’t think that is an option in the middle of a pandemic and so we need to make sure that we are protecting our students and teachers.”

DSISD, on Monday also released a plan that allows for certain groups of students served in special education, to return on-campus before September 14. This will be a phased approach with some special services students returning Monday, August 31. The second phase will occur on Tuesday, September 8. Parents would have also had to have selected on-campus learning for the first grading period. An e-mail with more information was distributed to parents of students served in special education.

For more information about Washburn's recommendation, you can visit the district website at https://www.dsisdtx.us/ and find his proposal attached to the August 24 board meeting agenda.