SAN ANTONIO — Superintendents in San Antonio-area school districts say they will not be closing schools again, despite the local health authority moving the school risk level indicator from the “yellow” to the “red” zone.
San Antonio’s MetroHealth issued a directive advising against in-person school, recommending that it be limited to just the most vulnerable and at-risk students, while providing testing for in-person school staff.
A local teachers union is now calling for all schools to close and be entirely virtual again like in the spring but at least three school districts in San Antonio told Spectrum News they will continue to offer an in-person option for families.
“I think at the moment our leaders really need to step up for what is best for our community," said Alejandra Lopez, president of the San Antonio Alliance of Teachers and Support Personnel, which is now calling for schools to go back to an all virtual model as Bexar County experiences a sharp increase in COVID-19 cases.
“The fact is that our schools have never been open during a surge in COVID, we were closed when this happened in the summer. And so, unfortunately, we don't know what the potential ramifications are of keeping schools open while we are in the red zone," said Lopez.
San Antonio ISD, North Side ISD, and Harlandale ISD all said they don’t plan to move back to an all virtual model. Despite the statewide surge in coronavirus cases, the Texas Education Agency requires school districts to provide an in-person option for all families who want it, unless the governor orders schools closed or there is an active outbreak on a campus. That isn’t good enough for Lopez.
“The science should be what's driving these decisions, and we need leaders who are going to stand up to our state officials and say, 'No, we are not going to let you hold our funding hostage,' and unfortunately our superintendents have not been as strong as they need to be in their messaging around that," said Lopez.
She says unless swift action is taken, the most vulnerable communities will suffer.
“Our district serves predominantly working class communities of color. Those are the exact communities that are being the hardest hit by COVID. When we had the summer surge, San Antonio had the highest mortality rate out of all major cities in Texas. So unfortunately, when we talk about academics, we also need to talk about what is the real cost of potentially keeping schools open during the surge in our most vulnerable communities," said Lopez.
San Antonio’s COVID-19 positivity rate is now at 15.7%, compared to 9.2% last week.
“With all due respect our superintendents are not public health experts. This is a very new virus, we do not know the long term effects, I would say, even one person contracting COVID within our schools is too many," said Lopez.
It’s a grim possibility that has the potential to increase as the holiday season continues.