The Texas Education Agency is giving school districts the freedom to limit access to on-campus instruction for the first four weeks of school. After that, schools can continue to limit access to on-campus instruction for an additional four weeks with a waiver request.
The TEA had previously asked schools to offer both in-person and remote learning options at the start of the school year.
Additionally, school boards in areas with "high community spread" are allowed to delay the start of the school year.
Here in North Texas, all Dallas County public and private schools are not allowed to offer in-person instruction until after Labor Day.
TEA guidelines include important exceptions for students; specifically, any family that lacks Internet access at home and/or requires devices for students learning virtually.
Any student requiring on-campus instruction during this period—i.e. those who need reliable access to technology—will still be entitled to on-campus instruction every day during this transition period.