Cameron ISD students return to class tomorrow
Cameron ISD students will return to classes on Aug. 19 for the 2020-21 school year, which will certainly be a different year due to COVID-19.
CISD administrators have been releasing videos via Facebook to let parents and students know what they school year will look like. You can check them out on each campuses Facebook page.
Each campus will have a different plan for dropping off students and each grade level will have a different entrance.
Parents and guardians have already made a choice for the first six weeks of the year as to whether students will attend face-to-face instruction or remote/online instruction.
The district is hosting a live Facebook Live question and answer on Friday, Aug. 14, at 9 a.m. You can submit your questions to the district regarding safety and security for the 2020-21 school year at the following link: https://forms.gle/TnYSij2KKoA6bwMh8
The district will provide direct instruction via digital platforms. Ben Milam and Cameron Elementary will use SEESAW to communicate while Cameron Junior High and Yoe High will use Google Classroom.
“Cameron ISD’s top priority is the health and safety of its students and staff members,” Sprinkles said in a press release. “As a result, the district has been working diligently to develop a quality back to school plan that will enable us to provide a healthy and safe learning environment and ensure that all students are challenged with a rigorous world class academic experience.”
For safety, the district will employ frequent handwashing, limit and regulate restroom usage, reduce student movement and transition, limit the sharing of supplies and other items, prohibit visitors and volunteers without formal appointments, screen students and staff for health, require masks when entering the facility and in all common areas or when social distancing is not possible.
Masks and face coverings will be provided to staff and students or they can bring their own.
Drivers and bus monitors will wear masks when transporting students. If dealing with suspected sick students, they will wear face shields. Students are recommended to wear masks on the bus. Buses will be disinfected after each route and windows will remain down when temperatures allow it.
Classrooms and restrooms will be disinfected daily, including high-touch areas. Cleaning cloths will be changed after each room and common area. Custodians will wear masks and gloves while working and cafeterias will be disinfected between lunch periods. Staff will also have access to disinfectant for working surfaces and shared objects after each use and during teaching breaks.
If a teacher or staff member finds themselves with symptoms of the virus or tests positive, they must alert their campus and remain off campus until they meet criteria for re-entry. Reports must also be made if there has been close contact with a person confirmed to have the virus. Those members must also remain off campus for 14 days.
Parents are urged to monitor their children for symptoms daily and ensure they do not send sick students to campus. Any person confirmed to have the virus may only return to school after at least 24 hours passed since recovery, symptoms improved, and 10 days have passed since the symptoms appeared. Cameron ISD will separate and isolate any student who shows symptoms while at school and will clean any and all areas used by that person.
“I would like to thank you for your patience during this time,” Sprinkles said. “I know that many of you may have some anxiety about your students returning to their respective campuses this fall. I would like for you to know that the teachers, staff, administrators and board of trustees truly view each and every students as their very own. We are committed to making 2020-21 an excellent educational experience for all students.”
Facilities update
The CISD Board of Trustees took on the topic of facility updates during a meeting Aug. 10.
Board members heard from Claycomb and Associates about a facility assessment conducted across the district’s four campuses including the Old Yoe building.
Most of the district’s facilities were found to be in satisfactory condition. The biggest concern was the roofs of each building. The roofing material has reached the end of its life, being the original material from when each building was constructed.
There is also concern over the ag building at the high school. The building was built in 1954 and has a wood roof.
The board also heard a report on the structure of the Old Yoe building. The building is sound and could easily be renovated for use by the district as an administration building should the district want to do that.
No plans were made, this was just a report about the status of facilities.