The Arlington school board voted to delay in-person classes until September 28 early Friday morning.
The school board started meeting at 5 p.m. Thursday and voted on the plan about 1 a.m Friday.
Arlington ISD started with online learning only August 17. The school board met Thursday to vote on a schedule to begin in-person classes.
Tarrant CountyHealth Director Vinny Taneja recommended the delay for in-person classes. He said that would give Arlington ISD a chance to adjust if cases increase after Labor Day.
Teachers and parents lined up to speak on both sides of the issue. Teacher Sandra Hayden supported a move back to the classroom.
"I love my job. I give 100 percent every day. Every day," she said. "But my own children are suffering. They get the tired me. They get the 'I'm done with the day' me. I know I'm not the only one in this situation, and my fellow teachers are having a difficult time teaching and helping their own children."
Others say the district was making the right decision by delaying in-person classes.
"I know teachers and parents are tired," another teacher said. "We are all experiencing tech issues, and I know we all want things to just go back to normal. However, no matter how hard we wish for something, that will not make it true. It is still not safe or feasible to bring hundreds or thousands of students back into a school building altogether."
The school board voted 5-2 to delay in-person classes.
"I do understand the desire to get students back to class and pick a day to move on, but I don't agree at all with, 'we should do that because that's what everyone else is doing,'” said Arlington ISD Trustee Justin Chapa.
The school board also approved a "hybrid" learning plan for high school students. They will spend part of the week in class and part of the week at home for online learning.