PfISD Pfamily Pflyer
Weekly Parents/Guardians Update: Sept. 2, 2021
Dear PfISD Parents & Guardians
Dear PfISD Parents & Guardians,
We’ve been back at school now for three weeks, and I’m sure we are all looking forward to our first three-day weekend of the school year for Labor Day. It’s been a tumultuous and emotional first few weeks on all sides. We were all hoping this school year would be easier than 2020, but it’s even more challenging in many ways than it was last Fall.
There were many unknowns at the start of school last year, and we were making plans and changing them all last minute due to late guidance from TEA and the state, which was frustrating for everyone. But the one thing I can say for last year was that even through all of the ups and downs, it felt like overall, our community was coming together to support each other and get through this pandemic together, and we had more options available to us.
This year we have seen more divide than probably any time in my nearly 30 years in education. The topics of masks and vaccines have created differences of opinion that cannot be bridged as our parents and staff all have passionate beliefs on both sides. In the meantime, the number of positive cases in Central Texas, and the country, continue to rise, with community surging even before school started.
For everyone who is watching our dashboard (which is updated throughout the week and final numbers for a week are tallied on Friday), I know you have seen an increase in positive cases this year compared to last year. This comes as no surprise as we saw in July, even before school was back in session, case numbers were increasing with the new Delta variant of COVID-19 due to community spread, and local governments took no actions. In addition to the already rising cases in the community, this year is very different from last year as last year at this time, we had a mask mandate in nearly every place in the state, both in public and private businesses.
This past summer and even right after school started, I rarely saw masks worn in businesses, restaurants, and other public places. At the time, we were told that having the vaccines meant we did not need masks as the vaccinated would most likely not contract and spread the virus. We now know differently, and I am starting to see a few masks being worn in the community. Those vaccinated can still contract and spread the virus, and the CDC, Austin Public Health Authority, and other health authorities still recommend masks to slow the spread. The problem is that the other mitigation strategies (physical distancing, limited capacities, etc.) in the community are not being implemented widely.
Additionally, last year at this time, we were not even physically back in schools yet, and when we did open our doors to students, we had well below 40% enrolled for in-person instruction. However, we still were not at 40% capacity as many of those students and staff were required by the state to quarantine when they were close contacts. This year, we are back to almost 100% enrollment in in-person learning. Despite all of the precautions we take at our campuses outside of masking and our attempts to socially distance, it is not possible in some situations due to the number of students in our buildings. Also, the state does not require quarantining and has not funded temporary virtual learning for those who would quarantine.
All of this to say, although the number of positive cases is higher than last year, they are proportional to the number of kids in person, compared to last year. In actuality, I’m surprised at how low our positive case numbers have been compared to our surrounding districts, some of whom are smaller than us and haven’t been in school as long. I know of 4 districts in the area that have all had more than 100 positive cases in a day, and we have yet to have more than approximately 70 cases, and that was on a Monday, which included some reports that were late coming in over the weekend. Many other districts have been required by the Health Authority to close down multiple classrooms, while we closed our first one on Wednesday out of an abundance of caution.
We have taken some proactive measures within our district, and we will continue to do so even without APH directives. Some of these measures include canceling a Pflugerville MS football scrimmage and Weiss HS cheer activities for a week in an abundance of caution when we saw several cases among those in the activities. We are monitoring classrooms and extracurricular activities daily and working with our local health authority to determine if we need to close down classrooms or extracurricular activities for the safety of our students and staff.
We have instituted a mask protocol under Travis County’s Mask Mandate. The hardship on us now, the same problem facing other districts in the area, is how to enforce this mandate. Unlike last year when there was a law enforcement element to enforce masks. We will continue to remind students to wear masks and provide them with masks when they do not have one, but we will not turn students away.
Unlike last year, almost no measures are being taken outside of schools, as we are being directed alone to stem the current spike that began long before we returned to school. In fact, the recent spike had already reached near the same height as past surges before us starting back, with no other actions from counties and cities. I know that the City of Pflugerville and Travis County have enacted mask orders for anyone in their public buildings within the last few weeks, but I have to ask, are we as school districts the only answer to stemming the surge? That was not the effort this past school year; it was a community-wide effort, even outside the schools. As they watch the case numbers, I ask our city and county officials to consider what mitigation actions they can and will do, beyond just looking to schools, to mitigate the community spread that started in July? If they feel there is a real issue, decisions can’t be made in a vacuum. They must be done across the board if they are to have any reaching effect; otherwise, it impacts our ability to keep kids and staff safe, keep schools open, and stem the tide.
The Labor Day weekend is upon us, and this is always a big travel weekend and time for gathering with family and friends. I urge everyone to please exercise caution and sound judgment as what happens in the community and your homes eventually trickles into our schools. We cannot fight the community spread just by taking precautions in schools. The current surge clearly began over the summer in our community and cannot be slowed by merely calling on schools to do more stringent practices than what is being done outside of the classroom. These precautions must occur everywhere – at family gatherings; external teams, groups, and clubs; restaurants; church; shopping; etc.
We all want this to be over. We want our kids to be safe. We want our schools to remain open. We want the cases to decrease, and we want our family and community members safe. I know it’s hard for all to agree on everything, but we can agree on that. I hope everyone has a safe and relaxing Labor Day weekend.
In the best interest of children,
Dr. Douglas Killian
COVID-19 Dashboard
As we have indicated, for every lab-confirmed positive COVID-19 case on a campus, PfISD continues to contact trace and notify staff and parents of students who may be considered to have been in contact with an individual with COVID. Additionally, we have continued to provide a dashboard that shows a weekly and cumulative total of all positive cases, both as a district and by campus.
Positive cases will be added to the dashboard throughout the week, and the total will be finalized every Friday for a weekly count.
In an abundance of caution this school year, we have expanded our contact tracing protocols to include all students within a classroom, not just those within a certain distance for an extended period. Last year we only sent letters to those who were within six feet of the positive person for at least 15 minutes. Because of these changes, we are sending letters to a larger number of parents and staff, and you may receive multiple letters, especially for our secondary students who interact with more students and staff. Again, we are doing this as an abundance of caution and to provide as much transparency as possible to our parents and staff.
If you receive one of these letters, please monitor your student, or yourself, for COVID-19 symptoms. At this time, PfISD does not require close contacts to quarantine. Only the positive individual is required to quarantine. Quarantine is optional for close contacts, and any students who choose to quarantine will have their missed days counted as an excused absence. Please contact your child’s school if you plan to quarantine your student. Staff who choose to quarantine as a close contact will utilize their leave days, as with other illnesses.
PfISD COVID-19 Dashboard: https://www.pfisd.net/Page/8013
*This is subject to change by TEA and DHHS
SafeStop Bus Notifications
Pfestival of Bands
Our annual Pfestival of Bands event hosted by PfISD Fine Arts is back! After canceling last year’s event, our Fine Arts Department is proceeding with a scaled-back version of the event this year scheduled for Sept. 27 at The Pfield.
All four high schools will perform their UIL contest shows. More details will be provided as they are finalized.
Athletics Update
Last week marked the beginning of the fall sports seasons for high schools and middle schools. We had some amazing performances to start the football and volleyball seasons that definitely deserve some recognition.
Pflugerville High School opened the football season with a 33-14 win over Laredo United. Quarterback Jaylon Reeves was the star of the game with FOUR rushing touchdowns plus another passing! What a showing from Jaylon and the Panthers!
Weiss and Connally both lost close games to start their season and Hendrickson took on one of the top teams in the state to give themselves a good challenge right out of the gates.
Our volleyball teams played in tournaments over the weekend, and Hendrickson came away with a runner-up finish in San Marcos, and Weiss finished third in Fredericksburg. Volleyball has one more week of action before beginning district play.
Academics Updates
Senior Stephany Merchán made history for the Hawks this summer by becoming the first FFA student from Hendrickson to win a state title by taking first place in the Texas State FFA Spanish Creed Invitational! Stephany officially received her plaque this week at the Hendrickson FFA chapter meeting, so she could be honored by her classmates. Congratulations, Stephany!
The FFA Spanish Creed speaking competition came out of a recognition for a need for something that offered leadership opportunities, personal growth and career success that represents the true agricultural experience in Texas as 29% of Texans speak Spanish in their homes. It is projected these numbers will increase over the coming years, meaning the marketplace today’s FFA students will one day work in must be able to communicate in English and Spanish in order to serve its industry and community.
For the competition, students recite the FFA Spanish Creed from memory and then participate in a 5-minute question-and-answer session with judges. Each student must answer the same questions that are all related to the Creed. All questions and answers must also be said in Spanish for the competition.
DAAC Members Needed
If you are interested in serving on the PfISD DAAC, please complete the DAAC membership application. We are currently have vacancies for parents, community members and business representatives. Application forms will be kept on file for two years. Please note that submitting an application does not guarantee selection for service, but the application will be considered.
The following criteria apply to certain membership categories:
- Parents must live within the district and must be a custodial parent or guardian of a student currently enrolled in a district school. Parents may not also be PfISD employees.
- Community members must live within the district. Community members may not also be parents or PfISD employees.
- Business representatives need not live or work within the district. Business representatives may also be parents.
Receive PfISD Text Messages
Pflugerville ISD offers a service that will allow us to deliver important information to you via SMS text messaging. This service is intended to enhance the district's means of communication.
The district will only use the service to provide information that is timely and relevant. In order to participate in the new service, you must indicate your willingness to receive text messages to your phone. The process is simple and only takes a few seconds to complete.
Simply text any one of the following words to the number 68453: subscribe, opt-in, yes. You will know you were successful if you receive the following reply message:
Please note, only legal guardians whose contact information is currently tied to a student in the district’s student information system can opt-in to the text message system. If your number is not tied to a student in our district, the system will not accept your opt-in request for these notifications.
Please note, although the district does not charge you for this service, it does not pay for text message charges that may be incurred by you for sending or receiving text messages. Check with your wireless carrier for possible charges.
The service is provided by SchoolMessenger, the company which currently performs phone calls for absences and district emergencies. Subscribers may opt-out at any time by texting "STOP" 68453.
Athletics Ticket Sales Online Only
PfISD ticket sales for athletics events will be entirely online this year. Spectators will be provided electronic tickets, and will have the option to print out tickets to be scanned at the gate. Cash transactions will be prohibited on gameday.
The move to electronic ticket sales eliminates the need to exchange and handle cash, and proved to be efficient last year when implemented by PfISD Athletics.
PfISD also is eliminating season ticket sales, as was done last year. Reserved seat tickets will also not be sold this football season. However, certain passes, including Gold Passes, which allow senior citizens free access to athletic and fine arts events, will be accepted.
Spectators will be able to purchase tickets online as early as the Monday before each home game. Tickets will be available at 2021 GameDay Tickets: The Pfield .
PfISD high school varsity teams will each play home games at The Pfield. The district will host 20 home games at The Pfield this year, beginning Aug. 26 with two non-PfISD schools facing off. Due to construction delays for Hutto High School’s football stadium, Hutto will take on College Station on Aug. 26 at The Pfield.
For the full slate of 2021 season games at The Pfield, see below.
Please continue to socially distance as much as possible, wash your hands and wear a mask. This school year, we will continue to find learning opportunities and activities to prepare our students for success in and out of the classroom.
Together this Pfamily can do anything, and through the challenges, we are #MovingPforward.
In the best interest of children,
Dr. Douglas Killian
PfISD Superintendent of Schools