NATIONAL NEWS

Schools could be mask-free by fall, says Fauci

Dr. Anthony Fauci, chief medical advisor to the White House, says that it is conceivable for middle schools and high schools to be completely mask-free in the fall, if children continue to be given COVID-19 vaccines. “It’s within our power. We can stop it or prevent it merely by vaccination, and I guess that’s the thing that’s so frustrating about when people don’t want to get vaccinated,” Dr. Fauci said. “We all want to be back to normal...There’s an easy pathway to that, and that is just get vaccinated.” On Tuesday, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said that  more than half a million 12- to 15-year-olds have received a COVID-19 vaccine so far, less than a week since they were cleared for distribution among kids of that age.

CNBC 

DISTRICTS

Fleet officially named Spring Hill ISD superintendent

The Spring Hill ISD board has voted unanimously to officially name Penny Fleet as the district's superintendent. Currently assistant superintendent of curriculum and special programs, she replaces Wayne Guidry, who resigned in January to become assistant superintendent at Longview ISD. Ms Fleet is the only woman serving as the top leader at a Gregg County school district.

Longview News-Journal 

Fort Bend ISD postpones construction of new high school

Fort Bend ISD has decided to delay the construction of the recently-named Almeta Crawford High School due to labor and supply shortages brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. The district’s 12th high school was originally scheduled to open in the 2022-23 school year; however, the school is now expected to open with grades 9-11 during the 2023-24 school year, according to Anthony Indelicato, chief of staff and collaborative communities. “We are disappointed by the delay, but labor, distribution and supply chain disruptions due to the pandemic are factors the district cannot control,” explained Superintendent Charles Dupre.

Community Impact 

Montgomery ISD leaders prepare new strategic plan

Montgomery ISD Superintendent Heath Morrison says the district plans to adopt a strategic plan in Jun. With other school officials, he provided an overview and update during Tuesday's regular school board meeting on the development of the three year plan which is guided by the district's five adopted goals: academic achievement; school safety; finance and operations; human capital; and communications and customer service. Five task forces were formed in November 2020, focused on each goal, and led by a senior district administrator and campus principals and included district teachers, staff, parents, students, and community members over in-person and virtual meetings. The taskforce committees grew from 15-20 members to around 30-40 members over time, the school officials said. “Since day one of this process, our goal for the strategic plan was to authentically reflect the community's desires and vision for our school district,” Morrison stated. “Our community's vision is for Montgomery ISD to be ‘the premier school district in Texas. The strategic plan is our ‘pathway to premier.'”

Houston Chronicle 

EMPLOYMENT

Pasadena employees in line for pay hikes

Pasadena ISD trustees have unanimously approved raises for district employees for the 2021-22 school year as well as authorizing a boost in hourly pay for summer school teachers. All employees will benefit from a 3% raise based on the midpoint of their respective salary ranges for the 2021-2022 school year. The salary for starting teachers will jump from $56,130 to $57,619 next school year. Hourly pay for summer school teachers will increase by $2 to $30. The decisions were made during a recent budget workshop meeting in which Superintendent DeeAnn Powell said the increases will help the district retain and recruit teachers next year as well as persuade educators to work this summer.

Houston Chronicle 

HEALTH & WELLBEING

Iowa bans face-mask mandates in schools

In a last-minute move at the end of Iowa’s legislative session, Gov. Kim Reynolds signed a bill banning mask mandates in public schools across the state. Iowa’s seven-day COVID-19 case average has dropped below April 2020 levels, with 202 people testing positive in the week to May 19th. The state’s move follows a similar mask-mandate ban in Texas earlier this week. A push to ban mask mandates in schools is also making headway in Utah after the legislature passed a bill on Wednesday, sending it to Gov. Spencer Cox. American Federation of Teachers Randi Weingarten said the specifics of how to mask in school will take time to figure out. “It’s reckless and regrettable that governors in Iowa and Texas have ignored the reasons CDC lifted the mask mandate: the need to be vaccinated,” Ms. Weingarten said. “Vaccines are yet to be approved for those under the age of 12 and less than half of the U.S. population is fully vaccinated. Teachers and their students deserve better—but throughout the pandemic certain states have far too often thrown caution to the wind.” 

Wall Street Journal 

TECHNOLOGY

Mesquite ISD introduces new Ayo student career path system

Mesquite ISD officials met with other administrators across Texas on Thursday to introduce and discuss the introduction of Ayo - a platform where students enter information through tests and surveys to identify possible avenues where they might excel rather than utilizing a system of standardization that ranks students. The program collects data regarding students’ aptitude and areas of passion where students, parents and teachers can collaborate and tailor the student’s learning to fit those passions. Ayo has drawn interest from seven other school districts including Plano, Wichita Falls, Crandall and others. Members of the Texas Education Agency also showed interest in adopting the program.

Allen American 

TRANSPORTATION

Bus driver shortages worsen for many districts

As more Americans receive COVID-19 vaccines and schools reopen, school districts across the country are struggling to find bus drivers to transport students back to school. In a survey taken in March by HopSkipDrive, nearly four-fifths of school transportation professionals including superintendents, directors of transportation, and school transportation staff said the bus driver shortage was a problem for them. More than half of school districts with 25,000 to 100,000 students said they believed it could take three months or more to resume normal transportation operations. Issues include bus drivers with pre-existing medical conditions, making them at high risk for complications from COVID-19, while others have transitioned to jobs in the private sector after a year of being unemployed or furloughed. “You’re not seeing the full ramification of this because we are just kind of returning to school,” said National School Transportation Association Executive Director Curt Macysyn. He said the worst effects of the pandemic-fueled shortages are yet to come. Experts say the school bus driver shortage could be improved by offering paid training, and better benefits to attract newcomers to the field, focusing on driver retention, and staggering school start times so the same buses can run two routes per shift.

Education Week