SAN ANTONIO – San Antonio Independent School District officials announced on Monday that the district will begin to phase-in students to in-person classes beginning on Feb. 22.
Officials say their decision to announce the phase-in stemmed from city and county officials announcing that the local positivity rate dropped below 10%. At the 10% mark, schools are allowed to operate at 50% student capacity.
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Pedro Martinez, superintendent of schools for SAISD, said the district’s phase-in will depend on the community staying below 10%.
“As long as our local positivity rate remains in single digits, we will continue a gradual return of students,” Martinez said in a statement. “We know families have been patient, and we appreciate them working with us to keep student occupancy low until it has become safer in the community to open our schools to more students.”
According to a statement by SAISD, officials in the district have been “the most conservative among local school districts regarding the number of students learning on campuses.” To date, only 30% of SAISD students are learning in person, according to the district.
Campuses in the district will begin to reach out to families starting this week and prioritize students who are struggling with remote learning.
Additionally, according to the district, families of returning students will also be allowed to have their children participate in the weekly COVID-19 testing on each of the district’s campuses before resuming in-person learning.
The district said that it has experienced low positivity rates among students and staff who are tested, and its positivity rate has also fallen to 0.3% during the first week of February.
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