SAN ANTONIO – The long, awaited moment arrived Monday morning when students in the San Antonio Independent School District headed back to the classroom for a new school year -- mask or no mask.
SAISD Superintendent Pedro Martinez said the district plans to conduct COVID-19 testing weekly at all schools. Martinez also said that vaccination clinics at the district’s largest high schools are in the works.
“We’re ready, we’re ready to receive them. We’re going to do it in a safe way. I’m so proud that we have a positive track record -- especially last year -- of keeping everybody safe,” Martinez said.
District officials said 99% of parents support the recommendation for students and staff to wear masks while the rest opted for their children not to wear a mask indoors.
Parents like Jaime Contreras said they’re excited to see their kids back to school with friends and in an environment where they can learn.
“They haven’t seen their friends besides Zoom and online, you know, Skype, FaceTime. So she was excited,” said Contreras, whose 13-year-old daughter attends Tafolla Middle School.
SAISD officials said they had a 1% positivity rate in their schools at the end of the last school year when kids returned to the classroom. They hope that trend continues as the year progresses.