HoweEnterprise.com
Howe ISD (Continued from page 3)
cisions based on the information we have at that time. I’m trying to be very diligent to collect all that and sometimes you have to do what you think is best and go with it.” As of 10:30 am Monday, there were 700 school districts in Texas that were closed. It had been 500 during the previous weekend. Wilson said Commissioner Morath has supported each superintendent and stated that he would not second guess their decisions because each school and each community is different. If and when Howe ISD re-opens the TEA Commissioner has created an option for parents to keep their kids at home. If they miss school, they will be technically absent but counted as present. For the ISD, it would not create any funding issues from the state based on attendance. “He’s (Morath) been very responsive to our fears and needs about funding and testing and everything involved,” said Wilson. “We won’t be penalized based on low attendance if their parents don’t want to send their kids to school. We also will not be penalized if we exceed our bad weather days or bank hours that we have to use until we have to file for waivers. He said, ‘do what you have to do to plan and we’ll be very forgiving, but come up with a plan to provide instruction at home so that we’re still trying to move kids along.’” The ISD sent out a survey last Monday afternoon which was intended to provide the best means of instruction for students while in-person classroom attendance is not taking place. The survey was a question of which would your student prefer online coursework on paper/pencil coursework. “It’s going to be specific per campus,” said Wilson. “Obviously, we’re not going to give the elementary kids a lot of online work. But your high school students – they’re used to it, they’re already doing it and it makes sense for them to continue doing that. If a kid didn’t have access to the internet, we’re looking at alternatives. The commissioner said there’s no prohibition on opening your school for a small number of students.” Foodservice was another big topic at the board meeting where Wilson said they did receive permission from USDA to take-out lunches. “Hopefully starting next Monday, we’ll start either providing food or delivering food to different drop-offs throughout the district,” said Wilson. “I don’t think there’s a large number, but there’s a fair number of students that depend on our meals and we’re go-
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March 23, 2020
ing to do everything we can to provide them.”
One Act Play spotlight
Assistant Superintendent Darla Williams said the inventory was adequate for providing breakfast and a sack lunch for next week. Wilson also informed the board that the UIL has canceled all events through March 29 which also includes practices. UIL cancellations included athletics, music, theater, and all extracurricular events. The district will also be canceling all parent meetings or other meetings that take place at the school. Texas Governor Greg Abbot declared Monday that there would be no S.T.A.A.R. testing for the 2019-2020 school year. Some Howe High School seniors had not yet passed their required exams for them to graduate, but TEA reiterated that graduation committees were in place and they were going to be relaxing some of the rules which could allow the district to determine whether the student meets the necessary levels to graduate. One of the items TEA and districts will have to work through is the situation with the freshman that normally completes English I, Biology, and Algebra I as a graduation requirement. What will that look like in three years? Wilson says that they can work through that, but the immediate item is having flexibility for the seniors that need to re-take the S.T.A.A.R. test for graduation purposes. Wilson also said that Grayson College announced that they will host online classes for students enrolled in dual-credit courses. During the school closures, teachers under contract will continue to be paid as well as hourly staff. One question arose regarding substitute teacher pay. “If you (a substitute teacher) were scheduled to work a day this week and a day next week, in my opinion, those aren’t paid,” said Wilson. “But if we have a longterm sub that is subbing for a teacher on maternity leave that has been working and supposed to work three more weeks, I’m inclined to continue to pay them. If we have a commitment to them, I think we need to honor them.” The board agreed and Board Member Mark Abner commented that the district would need them to be ready to go when schools begin again. In items beyond COVID-19, Wilson informed the board that the plans for the high school campus renovations have been submitted for bid. “Unless something crazy happens, we still plan on having a proposal for you to consider at (Continued on page 10)
a Colton Thurman
Meet COLTON THURMAN, an athlete that volunteered to join OAP when Instructor Katie Ciani went searching for more boys. Here are some things Colton would like you to know about him: I am a SENIOR and I play Polyneices in Antigone. This is my 1st show with HHS theatre.
My favorite memory with HHS theatre is the lunches after clinic, hanging out with friends and eating a ton of food. Something everyone should know about HHS Theatre is that a lot more goes into One Act and putting together a show than anybody, especially non-theater students, could ever think.
