Updated Wednesday, March 25 with additional schools — Hours before a stay-at-home order went into effect for Bexar County and the City of San Antonio Tuesday, the county's 16 school districts announced a third extension to campus closures to help limit the spread of the coronavirus.
Students and teachers were previously told to stay home until Monday, April 6. They’re now slated to return Monday, April 27, seven weeks after the start of spring break.
In social media postings and letters sent home to parents, area superintendents indicated that the decision to push back their return was in response to advice from local officials, and could be changed again if the situation merits it.
In a letter posted to the district website Tuesday, North East ISD Superintendent Sean Maika said he was “holding out hope that we may return this school year, but as we continue to see with COVID-19, things are constantly changing.”
Dolores Sendejo, interim superintendent of South San ISD, said it seemed likely that the number of COVID-19 cases in Bexar County would grow in the coming days.
“Suspending operations for this length of time will allow us to determine, in coordination with local health officials, whether the virus is continuing to have community spread or whether it has been contained,” Sendejo said.
All Texas schools are closed through at least April 3, by order of Gov. Greg Abbott.
IDEA Public Schools are closed indefinitely. Brooks Academy of Science and Engineering the BASIS Charter School network also announced Tuesday they were extending their closure through April 24. Great Hearts Academies followed suit Wednesday.
Until schools reopen, students will be given distance learning options, using technology or paper packets provided by their schools.
San Antonio Area School Systems Closed through at least April 24 include:
Brooks Academy of Science & Engineering
Pre-K 4 SA
Camille Phillips can be reached at Camille@TPR.org and on Twitter at @cmpcamille.
