From the moment we chose to be one of the few school districts to begin on-campus learning instead of being 100% remote, our Wylie ISD family joined together to create an amazing educational experience for our students. We did so with a balanced percentage of remote and on-campus learners, providing both groups with a quality educational experience. It has been a big success, and we are so grateful for your help in making it happen.

Our remote learners are going strong with our enhanced online education experience and getting better each day as we work towards the completion of digital audio/visual equipment installation. On-campus learners have followed social distance requirements and have worn masks that have kept COVID-19 cases at a minimum and attendance rates at an all-time high. We believe these results are so positive because of the cooperation of our entire Wylie ISD family and the principles and guideposts that will guide our decisions for now and the future.

STATISTICS

Early planning, guidance, and understanding of the expectations of remote and on-campus learning was beneficial in helping parents and teachers to make informed decisions for the first nine weeks. The result was an even balance of choices.

Keeping everyone safe, and keeping exposure to a minimum, was essential for schools to remain open. As we explained from the beginning, Wylie ISD would experience positive cases and/or be impacted from a contact trace that would result in quarantine. Thankfully, early detection, tracing, and quarantining has kept COVID-19 under control. We are so thankful for our kids and employees who have exceeded all expectations regarding the willingness to social distance and wear masks. Great job!

We promised transparency. We currently have a combination of 140 employees and students in quarantine. Our Wylie ISD COVID-19 dashboard is regularly updated to provide the latest information by district and campus.

PLANNING FOR THE 2nd NINE WEEKS

Careful planning has helped to make our start to school successful. Thank you for your input and feedback. Our requirement to ask families to make a commitment for the first nine weeks allowed campus administrators to schedule classes and ensure social distancing requirements were met. Creating basically two schools on one campus is complex. This included a great deal of cooperation and help from principals, teachers, and many others. Thank you, Wylie ISD employees!

Our next step involves planning to make good on our promise to allow learners to switch modes of instruction for the second nine weeks. A few clear and simple guidelines and timelines will guide us to make the second nine weeks as successful as our start to school. If parents do not plan to switch their student’s learning platform, NO further action is required.

1. If parents plan to switch their student to a different learning platform from the first nine weeks, please submit the request through Skyward Family Access.
2. The deadline for submitting a change is Friday, September 25.* 
3. Parents must commit for the entire second term. 

*Thank you for the extra lead time necessary to accommodate personnel changes and ensure any increase in student population does not compromise our current social distancing classroom configuration.

Please note that your child may be rescheduled due to class sizes, master schedules, and teacher changes even though they do not change their mode of instruction.

HIGH SCHOOL HYBRID CONTINGENCY

If the high school on-campus learning population exceeds an enrollment that would ensure we can provide adequate social distancing, Wylie ISD will consider an emergency hybrid option to safely accommodate these students. The Texas Education Agency provides a provision in grades 9-12 that allows a hybrid option. Hybrid instruction assigns students on-campus days and remote instruction days, on an alternating schedule, to allow for a smaller number of students on campus at one time.

MAKING THE SWITCH

We will use the time between the close of the survey and the end of the term to plan for classroom rearranging, teacher changes, and determination of any further protocols needed in order to ensure the safety of all of our students and staff. The second term begins on October 19, but we are requesting that students not change their learning mode until October 26. This allows time for clerical changes to be made after the close of the first term, including class changes and final entering of grades.

YOUR INPUT

We welcome and value your input. Please reach out to us, or to your campus principals, if you have a question or concern. Together, we will keep your children safe and ensure learning is happening, the Wylie Way!

Wylie Family,
From the moment we had to close our schools back in March, our students, staff, and parents have done an amazing job of focusing on learning while remaining hopeful that things would return to normal. We have said from the beginning that Wylie ISD will seek your input, move at the speed of safety, and make decisions that are in the best interest of our community. As the start of school draws closer, the plans we have spent the summer working on will provide the high level of education you expect from us along with the focus on safety we all need right now.

RESPONDING TO FREQUENT CHANGES

You may remember that, on June 23, the Texas Education Agency announced that school districts would be required to offer a choice of remote or on-campus learning for students. Wylie ISD customized our remote and on-campus options for students and asked parents to make a decision for their children.

With the number of COVID-19 cases rising in Texas, Governor Abbott provided an additional option for schools to provide up to 15 days of remote instruction for all students. Later that week, this option was extended to offer additional weeks, with board approval. Thank you for your patience to allow Wylie ISD to slowly and carefully make safe and data-driven decisions regarding these options.

Wylie ISD first worked to determine if we would carefully and safely proceed with our original plan to begin on August 13, which provided parents with an on-campus option OR move to 100% online for the first 15 days of instruction. Because we want our teachers and students to be safe and feel safe, we considered the following factors that impact students returning to campus: Texas Education Agency and Governor Abbott’s guidelines, observing Collin County COVID-19 counts and trends, reviewing our Student Intent survey data, teacher and staff survey data and follow-up survey data, as well as guidance from trustees and district and campus leadership.

Current COVID-19 reporting data indicates that students may safely return to school as long as they follow strict protocols with manageable numbers that allow for social distancing. This includes enhanced safety standards that require employees and students from grades 5-12 to wear face coverings. Please click here to read the Wylie ISD face covering guidelines and other important health and safety guidelines.

PARENT CHOICE

Thank you, parents, for quickly completing our intention survey. Results from this survey show a balance between the choice of on-campus and remote learning.

A campus half-full provides the chance for everyone to practice social distancing.

COMMITMENT SURVEY

With the implementation survey complete, the Wylie ISD parent commitment survey will launch tomorrow, Thursday, July 30. You will receive an email with instructions on how to complete the survey in Skyward Family Access.

TEACHER CHOICE

Because teachers are required to come back to work, we want to not only keep them safe, but do our best to make them feel safe and hear their voices. For this reason, Wylie ISD teachers also have the choice to teach remotely or in person. This was so important to us that we asked teachers choosing the on-campus option a second time to make absolutely sure they felt safe as well.

We are grateful for our teachers and their commitment to our students. These results give us the confidence to fill both remote and on-campus classrooms. There may be some circumstances where an on-campus teacher may be required to teach remotely, as well.

PRINCIPLES

Thank you for your feedback regarding the Governor’s option to move online. The overwhelming majority of the communication I received from parents were requests to keep on-campus learning as an option for our return to school. Based on your feedback and critical data, Wylie ISD continues to use these principles to guide our decision.

After an exhaustive review of our data, and preferences from our stakeholders, Wylie ISD trustees met on Tuesday, July 28, to review options and discuss health and safety protocols with district leadership. After this board workshop, Wylie ISD has chosen to carefully proceed with the original plan to begin on August 13 and provide parents the on-campus and remote learning option.

THANKS FOR YOUR PATIENCE

Since the Texas Education Agency decided to offer both an on-campus and remote option for Texas students in late June, Wylie ISD has been working to equip classrooms and teachers with the tools and training to do their jobs. Some of that equipment may not be completely installed until after Labor Day. Scheduling students into two different modes of learning, training teachers, as well as planning and practicing the logistics of health and safety protocols are big tasks. Your grace and patience as we proceed at the speed of safety is immensely appreciated.

While confidence remains high, our plans can be changed by Governor Abbott, the Texas Education Agency, and the Collin County Health Department. COVID-19 cases may drastically increase, or something outside of our control could change these plans. We are grateful for your flexibility and understanding as we may be required to change our plans.

Please know that your kiddos are in good hands; and, regardless of what comes our way, we will be prepared, the Wylie Way!

Wylie Family,
Thank you for your patience and understanding as we took a little extra time to review all options and carefully prepare our back-to-school plan. This time allowed us to review promising ideas from other published district plans and wait for critical information from county, state, and federal agencies regarding COVID. As we have described in our previous communication, Wylie ISD will offer two options of instructional delivery models for our students. Descriptions of both On Campus Learning and Remote Learning can be found on our Back to School website. This website has a wealth of information and details you may find helpful when making a decision. 

• On Campus Learning
• Remote Learning

As hard as we have worked this summer to make Remote Learning mirror On Campus Learning, not all courses will effectively translate to a virtual learning environment. This impacts high school students more than any other group. Particular courses like welding or culinary, for example, are not structured for an online environment. If you have questions or concerns, please contact your campus counselor for more information about the specific courses you requested in the spring.

Regardless of which learning option you choose for your child, the expectations for coursework and the grading system will be the same for both On Campus Learning and Remote Learning. Wylie ISD believes this is the most fair and equitable solution for all of our students. Applicable courses in grades 9-12 will be included in calculating GPA and class rank for both On Campus Learning and Remote Learning students.

INTENTION SURVEY

Today, we are asking parents to complete the first of two surveys. This survey will ask parents to choose either On Campus Learning or Remote Learning for their student for at least the first nine-week grading period.

This initial survey is a non-binding intention survey, and it will help Wylie ISD finalize our staffing requirements and Remote Learning design. We are asking for this to be completed by Monday, July 20.

COMMITMENT SURVEY

On Thursday, July 30, parents will be sent a second survey for their child(ren) to choose either On Campus Learning or Remote Learning for the first nine-week grading period. This survey is a binding commitment for at least the first grading cycle. Surveys must be completed no later than 8:00 a.m on Thursday, August 6.  All students without a commitment response will be defaulted to On Campus learners.  Please consider completing the form as soon as possible. Students will be expected to remain in their chosen option through at least a nine-week grading period in order to limit scheduling and staffing complexities. We understand that circumstances could change for our families throughout this time, and adjustments will be examined on a case-by-case basis.

Again, thank you for your patience and understanding with our plan to provide our students the best education possible. We are here to help you. Please keep in mind that our plans may change as directives are provided by governing authorities and/or health officials or as environmental conditions change. We will keep you updated and do our best to be timely in communicating any new information to you. If you have any questions, please contact your campus administrator.

Thank you for your efforts to take care of our students, the Wylie Way!

David Vinson, Ph.D.
Superintendent
Wylie ISD

Wylie Family,
Have you ever met a student who, prior to the first day of school, needs to visit the campus in order to feel good about his/her school experience? For those types of students, sitting in classrooms, learning locker combinations, or visiting the cafeteria prior to the first day can foster a feeling of safety, security, and preparedness. I was not one of those kids. Instead, I was the kid who may or may not have remembered to bring supplies to school the first day. But, I was ready to enjoy every minute of the school experience. To this day, I still get excited for the first day of school. This year is no exception.

Returning to school will be a bit different this year. Different, but great. We are going to take good care of everyone, and we will do our best to keep everyone healthy and safe. You have recently received two blogs from us as we make careful preparations for the new school year. You will continue to receive more updates as we do our best to care for you and our kiddos with a proactive response we want you to feel good about. 

We care about you. We love you; and, with many important guidelines to follow, we treasure your dedication to our precious students.

Our commitment to safety includes offering additional care to those who may need to take extra precautions. With COVID-19 still present, some of you, or someone you live with, may have underlying health conditions that may be compromised if you are required to be in close and regular proximity to others. If you fall into this category, please contact Cindy Dering, Risk Manager, at cindy.dering@wylieisd.net. We appreciate your help in providing us with this valuable information that will help keep you and your family healthy and safe. We are asking that you contact us by Thursday, July 16.

Although the illness, itself, presents many worries and concerns, some teachers may have a different fear than COVID-19. As we prepare to serve students both in our classrooms and digitally, we realize that some may be a little more comfortable using technology than others. PLEASE don’t worry or fret. Our goal is to keep using those tools you are already familiar with in your classroom along with purchasing additional technology for your current setup that promises to keep you thinking more about teaching and less about technology. We promise that it will be easy, it will be seamless, and it will be amazing!

We love you, we trust you, and we know that, together, we are going to make next year amazing, the Wylie Way!

Today, June 23, 2020, the Texas Commissioner of Education has provided our general pathway for how we will be approaching the 2020-21 school year. This information provides greater clarity for our planning purposes. He explained that all Texas public school students would have the option of attending school in person or at home.

This decision by TEA eliminates the “Hybrid” school option mentioned in the previous blog.

More Information Requested

The Commissioner did not provide details regarding in-person learning options. This information will come later. We do not have information regarding sports, fine arts, transportation, personal protective equipment, etc.

We are so proud of what we accomplished last spring and appreciate your help in making it happen. However, the Texas Education Agency has mandated more precise and rigorous guidelines than what we experienced in the spring. These guidelines include, but are not limited to:

• Remote learning must cover all state curriculum standards.
• Students will be accountable for mastery of the state curriculum standards.
• Remote-Learning and in-person grading policies will be the same.

The bottom line, remote learning will be much tighter and expectations much higher than online learning from the spring.

Your Input

This decision means on August 13th your student will either attend school in person or remotely. While many questions remain, we want to know your initial thoughts and feelings about these options. As a parent, if you decided today, which option would you choose? Please click on the link below and take our quick survey regarding your preference for the fall. We will also collect any questions you may have to help guide future decisions.

Back to School Parent Survey

Thanks for your faith and confidence in us as we move at the speed of safety to welcome our students back to school, the Wylie Way!

Wylie ISD parents, we miss your kids! Summer is a busy time for us as we prepare for back to school. We know you are wondering what type of school day we will have when we start the new school year and want the answer to these questions. Will we return to a regular school day as we had before closures from COVID-19? Will we continue to have online learning? Will school begin with a mix of in-school and online learning? None of us have the answers yet, but we can assure you, regardless of what school looks like in August, Wylie ISD will be ready to welcome back your students on August 13.

This photo is of a kindergarten student in China, wearing his “meter hat” to socially distance himself from classmates. Educators across the world find themselves in the same situation—looking for innovative ways for students to practice safe social distancing. Wylie ISD campus and district administrators met on June 9 to begin planning for reopening our schools in August. We understand that all future decisions are framed with guidance from the Texas Education Agency (TEA) and the Center for Disease Control (CDC).We will be attentive to the specific health and safety parameters established to minimize the spread of COVID 19. We also included feedback from parents and teachers in our discussions regarding online learning from spring 2020 and research from other countries that have begun reopening schools like China, South Korea, and France.

Wylie ISD’s goal is for school to resume as close to normal as possible, beginning on August 13. However, pending guidance from state and federal agencies regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, we realize that there may be guidelines that cause us to adjust our plans. We are actively working on contingency plans in case we aren’t able to resume the traditional school day. As shown in the graphic below, we are working on three different scenarios for the 2020-2021 school year.

This scenario is the school experience we knew before the pandemic but with increased infection-control practices. All staff and students would return to Wylie ISD buildings; transportation would run as normal; all extracurricular activities would resume. Depending on further CDC and TEA guidance, even if everyone is allowed to return, social distancing and additional hygiene practices may impact typical school routines.

This plan involves a mix of traditional and online learning. If the state at any point reduces class sizes or building capacity, Wylie ISD will have a plan for students to continue learning through a mix of traditional and online learning. In theory, students may have designated days of the week to be at home participating in online learning, and other days they are at the school building in a traditional setting receiving direct instruction from teachers.

This plan involves teachers instructing online and students using technology to learn. This scenario would be enacted if schools were shut down again due to the spread of the virus. The CDC has cautioned that a resurgence of cases will prompt temporary closures during the 2020-2021 school year to slow the spread of the virus. If this is the case, Wylie ISD will be ready to move into online learning immediately.

Parents, we will be asking for your input in a survey the week of July 13. Although some districts are already surveying parents and announcing plans, we chose to wait a few weeks to gather more precise information about the possible increased spread of COVID-19 as the state gradually reopens. Your feedback is valuable to us, so please take the opportunity to complete the survey during the week of July 13.

Wylie ISD Timeline for Opening School

Back to School is a special time of year, and no matter what the school day will look like in August (traditional, hybrid, or online), you can count on us to continue providing the highest level of education to your children. Wylie ISD is committed to improvement, and we will work together—the Wylie Way!

Today, ‪Governor Greg Abbott ordered Texas Public Schools and universities to remain closed for the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year. Our kids and families may need a little encouragement as we cope with this new reality of not returning to campus this year. As a superintendent, I share your sadness. As a parent, my heart goes out to the seniors who will not return to school this year.

Graduation

At this time, no decision regarding graduation ceremonies has been made. The governor did explain that the Texas Education Agency would provide guidelines for graduation plans soon. As that information becomes available, high school principals will share it with students and parents.

You Have Questions, We Have Answers

Wylie ISD is well-prepared to continue to offer online learning, and we want to make certain that you have the information needed as we continue through the remainder of the school year.

Our amazing teachers have created assignments based on the most important skills students need to master for their classes. Please visit our online learning website for everything you need to know regarding online learning and more.

Here To Help You

Parents, you are doing a great job of helping our kids with online learning. Our Wylie ISD curriculum is rigorous, and we understand the struggles you may encounter. We are here to help. Students can receive help with their online classwork by participating in live teacher assistance sessions offered daily through Google Meets. We encourage you to contact your teacher to get the help you need.

Here to Connect You

If a student is struggling with online learning due to limited access to technology or the Internet, please contact your campus principal. We have WiFi hotspots available for those who do not have access to the Internet.

Grace Before Grades

It seems like we experience something new every day with online learning. In the spirit of “this is new for all of us,” giving and receiving grace is essential for this journey. This includes a few standards we have established for online learning:

• Teachers will only be entering minor grades during online learning.
• Teachers will be entering at least one, but no more than two, grades per week, per course.

The online grading procedures are posted on our online learning website.

We have not yet made a decision on how this will impact GPA and Class Rank for our high school students and those taking courses that impact high school GPA. We are exploring a variety of options. Our number one non-negotiable priority is that whatever decision we make is in the best interest of our kids. As soon as we have a final recommendation, we will let you know.

Wylie Family,
Thanks to our educators, students, and parents for the amazing implementation of Wylie ISD online learning. We have accomplished a great deal in a very short amount of time. With your help, we have made sure kids are fed and that their social and emotional needs are supported as well. Keeping everyone safe remains our top priority. Today, Governor Greg Abbott ordered Wylie ISD and all Texas public school districts closed and remained closed through Friday, May 1. Thank you for your continued patience, support, and encouragement; it matters.

We can celebrate that we are still able to honor our district calendar by not having school on April 10th and 13th in observance of Easter weekend. Initially, we thought we might have class on Monday, April 13th. However, guidance from the Texas Education Agency now indicates that we can still have this free time to spend with our families.

Many of you have asked about major events like prom and graduation. At this time, we have not made any changes to these plans. We understand the significance of these events, and we are working with our high school principals to look at all options. There are several factors that come into play, many of which are still unknown. I ask for your grace and understanding as we consider these decisions over the next few weeks. Any changes in these events will be communicated as soon as possible.

Spring is full of excitement and celebrations, and I encourage you to join me in focusing on the positive things that are circulating around you and your family. We have so much to be thankful for, let’s work together to focus on the good. We will get through this...the Wylie Way.

David Vinson
Superintendent
Wylie ISD
www.wylieisd.net

Note:  All Wylie ISD parents should have received a campus specific version of this message via email

Parents and Students,
It was good to see many of our families as you came through our Chromebook pickup lines Thursday and Friday!  Now that you have your technology, we are ready for school to start on Monday. Our teachers have been very busy preparing online lessons for you.  Beginning Monday, March 23, Wylie ISD will be monitoring student participation in Google Classroom.

You will receive a daily email from me, your principal, and your teachers each day of online learning.  These emails will give you informational updates and daily assignments. Please check on your friends to make sure they are receiving daily emails.  If they are not, please have them contact your principal.

For each day of online learning, please:

• Read daily emails from teachers and the principal
• Login daily to Google Classroom for assignments from teachers
• Complete online assignments by due dates
• Students who are in need of assistance or have questions about their work should attend the live support sessions from their teachers.
• Elementary schools have communicated login and generic password information for PreK-2nd grade students. Parents or caregivers will log into Google classroom and assist their PreK-2nd grade students with accessing their assignments.

Wylie ISD now has an Online Learning webpage to help give support and information. Here you can find information on low-cost or free WiFi access and a link with instructions on how to access Google Classroom.

We understand that this is new and different.  We are all learning together!  My staff and I are here to support you with your questions. We are available Monday - Friday between the hours of 8:00AM - 4:00PM

Thank you,

Principal