AISD: No Classes Until April 3, Preparing for Distance Learning
By Beth Sullivan, March 16, 2020, 1:50pm, Newsdesk
The Austin Independent School District, which today began its scheduled spring break, announced it has canceled classes from March 23 through April 3 amid COVID-19 concerns.
In a letter to the AISD community, outgoing Superintendent Paul Cruz said the district will operate a modified work week after spring break (March 16-20), which will provide planning time to transition to a distance learning environment for students, as well as telework for staff where possible.
The announcement came just days after the AISD Board of Trustees held an emergency meeting Friday night (March 13) in which the board unanimously approved a resolution granting Cruz authority to take “immediate action” on coronavirus prevention in Austin schools. The resolution gave Cruz the power to authorize procurement expenses that relate to cleaning supplies and online learning, in addition to compensating employees who may be affected by school closures.
Today, Cruz also confirmed that AISD Food Services will prepare and provide meals for students Monday through Friday starting March 23. Each student will receive a meal pack containing both breakfast and lunch, which they can pick up curbside from select sites. As of right now, there are 14 curbside meal sites:
Dobie Middle School
Cook Elementary School
Burnet MIddle School
LBJ Early College High School
Govalle Elementary School
T.A. Brown Elementary School
Eastside Memorial Early College High School
Dawson Elementary School
Linder Elementary School
Crockett Early College High School
Pleasant Hill Elementary School
Houston Elementary School
Akins Early College High School
Perez Elementary School
At Monday’s press conference, Cruz said the district is looking into meal delivery options for those unable to pick up meals curbside. An H-E-B representative also announced the Texas-based grocery store chain would be donating $100,000 to help AISD jumpstart its food services efforts.
AISD’s cancellation coincides with a swath of Central Texas school districts that also announced closures until the beginning of April, including Eanes, Hays, Lake Travis, Leander, and San Marcos. The Texas Education Agency also announced today that the state's STAAR standardized testing would be cancelled for the 2019-20 school year.
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