Texas Governor Greg Abbott spreads COVID19 in McKinney, Texas at a fundraiser at Heritage Ranch on earlier this week.
Abbott attended a fundraiser for the Republican Club at Heritage Ranch and the video above clearly shows him in close contact with dozens of other unmasked attendees at the venue.
A statement from the governor’s office said that everyone Abbott was close with has been notified of possible exposure to COVID19. He is currently being treated with monoclonal antibodies at the Governor’s Mansion.
The Governor’s spokesman would not comment about Abbott’s personal responsibility. The Texas Governor has said personal responsibility should be the standard on whether or not to wear a mask.
Abbott Spreads COVID19 In Schools Too?
Abbott is fighting against mask and vaccine mandates in Texas and issued an executive order prohibiting businesses and schools from requiring masks or vaccines to enter.
On Monday, Iraan-Sheffield ISD, a district about an hour south of Midland, Texas announced it would shut down its three campuses until August 30th. Bloomburg ISD and Waskom ISD also are shutting down campuses in light of COVID19 numbers in rural Texas.
The new guidance from TEA comes shortly after Governor Abbott denied emergency healthcare staffing for area hospitals experiencing a four fold increase in COVID19 hospitalizations in just a month’s time.
TEA COVID19 Guidance: COVID19 Vaccines
The coronavirus vaccine is not available for children younger than twelve, but for those students twelve or older, the vaccine will not be required despite other vaccines being necessary.
After a student turns eleven, they are required to be vaccinated against meningococcal meningitis.
TEA COVID19 Guidance: Parent Information
TEA guidance also says local ISDs do not have to inform parents of positive cases at their children’s school. They are required to report that information to state and local health departments.
Schools also don’t have to contact trace, but if they choose to do so, parents can still choose to send their kid to school if they are a “close contact” of a positive coronavirus case.
Per a local school site, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) is interfering in local direction again. COVID19 response plans have been shot down by Commissioner Mike Morath. He has rejected a proposal submitted by dozens of South Texas superintendents earlier this week that would have given districts the ability to continue a mostly remote instruction curriculum should COVID19 numbers surge over the winter break. While this decision does not impact Dallas now, it could if COVID19 numbers continue to rise.
South Texas and the Rio Grande Valley has faced a disproportionate number of COVID19 numbers. The Rio Grande Valley is just 4.7% of the entire Texas population, but accounts for 17% of deaths throughout Texas.
At a press conference Tuesday, Cortez and McAllen Superintendent J.A. Gonzalez outlined the plan, which would have included a waiver allowing districts to continue online instruction for 100% of families in areas with a hospitalization rate greater than 15% without having district funding affected. It also requested rapid COVID-19 tests be made available for priority students who do choose to attend on campus, with Cortez and Gonzalez citing potential superspreader events over the holidays as a chief motivator for the proposal.
TEA COVID19 Response and Funding
TEA has a long standing problem on the COVID19 question.
Dallas ISD Trustees Mackey and Michiche have previously both publicly stated it is better if students stay home and learn virtually. COVID19 continues to hit school after school including shutting down two campuses and numerous classrooms.
The Texas Education Agency appears to be ready to take over Desoto Independent School District’s due to multiple questions of financial problems.
The school board accepted Dr. D’Andre Weaver’s resignation during an emergency meeting Sunday night. The reason for his resignation was not made public.
Weaver’s term started with investigations into unethical practices including more than $300,000 in travel expenses. Former board member Jerry Hall said the school board refused to do anything about inappropriate spending.
The 18-page TEA report indicates former administration employees could face a criminal investigation for fifty fraudulent credit card purchases to fictitious vendors. His efforts met resistance from some board members who had the ultimate say over him.
Texas Education Agency Next Steps
The TEA is now recommending the troubled district be taken out of the hands of the divided school board. The Desoto ISD Board of Trustees accepted Weaver’s resignation after ninety minutes in executive session.
The Desoto ISD example may be a warning of things to come given Dallas’ own sudden departures. The auditor scandal has still not been explained and may effect the bond vote. There have also been recent accusations that Dallas ISD was trying to box out minority contractors – first inferred by Trustee Maxie Johnson and then seconded by Next Generation Action Network’s Dominique Alexander.
The STAAR scheduled tests are on for the 20-21 school year, but Governor Greg Abbott announced that the grade promotion requirement related to the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) test has been waived. This waiver for tests gives to fifth and eighth graders is only for the upcoming school year.
Typically, school systems must take into account a student’s score on the STAAR test to determine whether the student can be promoted to the next grade level. The traditional A-F rating system will remain in place, albeit with certain adjustments due to COVID19.
Students enrolled in grades 5 and 8 are required to re-take a STAAR test late in the school year, and sometimes again in the summer, if they do not meet grade level when taken during the spring. With this waiver, there will only be one administration of the STAAR grades 5 and 8 mathematics and reading assessments for the 2020–21 school year. The test will be administered in May to coincide with the administration of other STAAR grades 3-8 assessments.
“As always, our goal is to provide a high quality education for every Texas student,” said Governor Abbott. “This will be a uniquely challenging school year, therefore, this year is about providing students every opportunity to overcome the disruptions caused by COVID-19. By waiving these promotion requirements, we are providing greater flexibility for students and teachers, while at the same time ensuring that Texas students continue to receive a great education — which we will continue to measure with high quality assessments.”
Some will argue with Abbott’s assertion that STAAR provides a “high quality assessment.” There are vast differences between scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress test and the Texas STAAR testing bringing into question the test’s overall reliability and validity.
“Parents deserve to know how well their children have learned grade level knowledge and skills in reading and math, especially in a time when education has been substantially disrupted,” said Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath. “And educators use this valuable information to make adjustments to support students the following year. But there is no benefit to our children by requiring them to repeat a year based on a single test score given the disruptions of COVID, so we are waiving the grade promotion requirements from STAAR this year for our students.”
If the test can be exempted in the 2020-2021 school year the natural follow up question is why not do away with it altogether as a promotion mechanism? Governor Abbott and Mike Morath seem to want it both ways – they want the expensive test – but are not using its findings due to the “challenging school year.”
The new standard may offer Dallas ISD Calendar some added flexibility if the focus is not on high stakes testing. Locally though it brings into question, the Dallas Texas Excellence Initiative which ties teacher salaries to test scores in part.
Lori Kirkpatrick has several webpages about TEI on her website which may provide useful information opposing Dallas ISD’s viewpoint.
STAAR Scheduled Dates
All of the information on STAAR Testing dates is available via the Texas Education Agency website or below.
