Dear SST Family,
I want to update you regarding planning for the next school year. On Tuesday, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) released guidance to school districts regarding online learning. TEA has committed to funding online learning when teachers engage students in real-time online (synchronous method) or when students use technology resources to do work on their own time (asynchronous method). These new guidelines will enable us to continue developing online plans for fall. We are planning to share a survey with you before we finalize which online method we will use.
What I can assure you is that the upcoming school year’s online instruction will be better than it was at the end of last school year, including the fact that attendance and more rigorous learning assessment will be taken. Also, we are investing to maximize the online learning of our students and sort through logistics, curriculum. SST will provide tablets and computer access to help address part of the challenge. The students who prefer remote learning will continue to receive the same full academic and support services from their teachers, counselors, and school leaders that they would receive on-campus, including our English-language learners and students receiving Special Education services.
TEA has not provided guidelines and safety protocols for in-person instruction in the fall yet, and we are still awaiting guidance regarding in-person safety guidelines to finalize them as soon as possible so that you can make the best choice for your family. SST commits that the families who choose to send their students for in-person learning will find a safe and organized learning environment that includes enhanced health and sanitary protocols, as well as possible adjustments to daily routines to help keep all of our students and team members as safe as possible.
At this time,
- SST still plans to resume in-person classes on August 17.
- We will allow each family to choose whether to continue learning from home or return to campus for in-person learning for the 2020-2021 school year, based on each family’s unique needs.
- Families can also switch between the two as local COVID-19 conditions or family situation changes.
- We will continue to keep the health of our students and staff at the forefront of decision-making.
We will carefully review all feedback you have provided so that we can make the best decisions for
our
community.
SST has a history of excellence and we are determined to meet those high standards so that your child will be successful in the 2020-2021 school year, in college, and in their life. Together we will make that happen.
Respectfully,
