COLLEGE STATION, Texas — As College Station ISD approaches winter break, district leaders are looking back at the last semester. Superintendent Mike Martindale said students and staff "did what needed to be accomplished" when it comes to handling COVID-19 in the district.
The College Station ISD Board of Trustees met to discuss various items for the agenda Tuesday. At the meeting, Martindale gave his superintendent update which included current data of COVID-19 in the district.
There are 80 active cases in the district as of Dec. 15. The positivity rate among students and staff is at 0.51 percent.
Since Aug. 18 there have been 397 positive cases of COVID-19 among CSISD staff and students.
CSISD projects 83.9 percent of students will be learning on-site come Jan. 5, while 16.1 percent will be learning virtually.
In guidance with the Texas Education Agency, CSISD will require virtual learners who are struggling academically to return to on-site instruction starting Spring 2021.
"Those are specifically for students that have failed one or more courses at one point in time through the Fall semester," said Martindale. "If [students] are not being successful our responsibility as educators are to take care of them and prepare them for success and help them down that road."
The school board also reiterates the district is substituting sending emails regarding COVID-19 cases, for the College Station ISD COVID-19 dashboard. They ask students and families to check the dashboard regularly.
Approvals by the CSISD Board of Trustees on Dec. 15:
- Approval of recommendation to hire College View High School principal, Justin Grimes, for the position of principal of College Station High School.
- Grimes will begin new role Jan. 5.
- Approved an amendment to the funding source for the technology purchase in the amount of $249,936 from Avinext on Sept. 15 to be $228,957 from the General Fund and $20,979 from ESSER (CARES Act) Funds.
- Approved the purchase of an annual license for Cardonex, a master scheduling software, from Education Advanced in the amount of $62,901 from the General Fund and CSISD Foundation Funds.
- Approved the design proposal from VLK Architects for athletic field lighting improvement at A&M Consolidated High School and College Station High School in the amount of $72,000 utilizing 2015 Bond Funds.
- Jon Hall, the executive director of facilities, said the contractors hope to start work Summer 2021 and be finished in time for the new school year.