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Texas State Teachers Association President Ovidia Molina released the following statement Tuesday, Aug. 4:

“The governor says he is not responsible for making decisions about reopening schools, and it is the local school board that is responsible.  We couldn’t disagree more.  The governor needs to stop passing the buck to local school boards on when to reopen and should mandate no district start in-person instruction before Sept. 8 and then only when it is safe to do so.  The governor continues to ignore the fact that when schools do start, the Texas Education Agency will require districts to offer in-person instruction to students who request it, putting those students, school employees and families at risk.

“The governor’s optics today on PPE is a drop in the bucket, compared to what will be needed if schools are forced to reopen before it’s safe.  59.4 million masks are roughly 11 masks per student. That might get students through the first week of school.”

“After Sept. 8, districts should be allowed to reopen buildings to in-person instruction only after consultation with local health authorities, teachers, other school employees and parents and with strict safety standards enforced. Districts that choose to provide only online instruction must not be penalized with a loss of state funding.”