Due to the pandemic, school systems are expected to do something different about their learning environments. However, the school district Frisco ISD is taking a different approach to this situation.

About a week ago, Superintendent Michael Waldrip announced, “The district had been waiting for more details from the state before announcing a final decision.” Waldrip also said Frisco ISD learned through media records that Governor Abbott and Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath, had released decisions to lawmakers before giving out the details to other school districts. “It will be safe for Texas public school students, teachers, and staff to return to school campuses for in-person instruction this fall,” Commissioner Mike Morath said. “But there will also be flexibility for families with health concerns so that their children can be educated remotely, if the parent so chooses.”

The district plans to reopen schools on August 13th. Frisco ISD also made the option to choose whether your child will do remote learning, hybrid learning, or on-campus learning. Parents can choose which is best for their students.

Staff members will be expected to screen for symptoms before going to school, and screening their children every morning before sending them to school is necessary. Teachers will be expected to watch and check on students. If a staff member or student shows coronavirus symptoms, they will be told with an isolation protocol. Other students will be taken to another part of the school so that the classroom can be disinfected, according to Frisco ISD.

Districts across Texas are required to disinfect classrooms daily, physically distant group work, restrooms, and high-touch areas. There are also chances to wear face masks for students and staff, depending on how bad COVID-19 is in that area.

Students are also expected to participate in the STAAR test, or rather known as the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness.

On June 30th, Mike Morath gave a presentation to the State Board of Education, in which he told members that it will be mandatory for students to take the STAAR test in the 2020-21 school year. Students were excused from taking the test in the 2019-2020 year due to the pandemic. Morath said the STAAR test will be happening in the school year 2020-2021, whether students are doing on-campus learning, hybrid learning, or virtual learning, which requires every student to be present at the same time remotely. Morath said there may be modifications to the STAAR test, including a more altered way of calculating scores, as ratings were not collected this year and longer testing times of 30 days.

Chief Academic Officer Wes Cunningham states, “More than anything else, we want to start the school year as normal as possible with face-to-face instruction. We miss serving our students and working with our colleagues in the way we know is the best format – with our students in our buildings. However, we have a duty to prepare for multiple contingencies. We have heard from concerned families and staff and there simply isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution.”