• HISD will provide in-person learning five days per week for all students during the 2021-2022 school year. To learn more, review the HISD Ready, Set, Go! Back to School Plan

• The Ready, Set, Go! Back to School Plan provides students, families, employees, and community stakeholders with the information necessary for a safe return to in-person learning. The plan outlines both instructional and operational protocols for all facets of the country’s eighth largest public school system. The plan is considered a living, dynamic document to allow for updates as conditions change.

• Student uniform policies will be flexible at all schools for the 2021-2022 school year but campus dress codes should be followed.

• Students who are unable to attend school because of a physician-documented temporary medical condition are eligible for a maximum of 20 days of temporary online learning during the 2021-2022 school year. 
• HISD also is offering a Virtual Learning Academy this fall for student who are too young to be vaccinated (11 and under) and have a compromised immune system. The Virtual Learning Academy starts Monday, Aug. 30 and will be taught by dedicated teacher-certified staff from central office. HISD will leverage ESSER relief funds to cover the cost of instruction. Detailed information on student eligibility and the application process is online at HoustonISD.org/VirtualAcademy. All applications and medical documentation must be submitted by Wednesday, Aug. 25.

• Students, staff, and visitors are asked to monitor their health and stay home when sick.
• Masks covering the nose and mouth are required for all individuals inside all HISD schools, buildings, and buses regardless of vaccination status. Their use is also encouraged outdoors.
• Elementary students will continue to undergo temperature screening upon arrival at school because they are not yet eligible for COVID-19 vaccines.
• All staff will be required to complete online self-assessments through the Axiom Medical CheckIn2Work health screening app before arriving at work.
• All district schools and buildings will be cleaned, disinfected, and fogged nightly with hospital-grade disinfectants as a precautionary measure. Hand sanitizer and other cleaning and disinfecting supplies will be provided in all school, buildings, and buses.
• Sanitization stations will be available in all buildings and students and staff are encouraged to wash or sanitize their hands regularly.
• Assigned seats will be required in classrooms, cafeterias, and buses.
• Plexiglass dividers will be kept in place.
• Visitation is limited to essential and pre-scheduled visitors, including individuals who have been pre-approved through the Volunteers in Public Schools (VIPS) program. Parents registering their children for school also are allowed.
• In-person gatherings, meetings, and events are permitted in HISD schools and buildings if all attendees wear masks and maintain 6 feet of physical distance. If these conditions cannot be met, the gathering must be held outdoors or virtually.
• Heating and cooling systems will undergo regular inspections with repairs prioritized and filters replaced with the highest grade allowable.
• Building rentals to outside groups and organizations will continue to be prohibited

• Elementary students will undergo daily temperature checks because they don’t have access to vaccinations. Middle and high school students should self-monitor and stay home if sick.
• All HISD campus and non-campus staff must check in daily via the Axiom Medical CheckIn2Work health screening app

Yes. Masks covering both the nose and mouth are required for all individuals inside all HISD schools, buildings, and buses regardless of vaccination status. Their use is also encouraged outdoors.

All district schools will be cleaned, disinfected, and fogged nightly with hospital-grade disinfectants as a precautionary measure.

• Schools and buildings are limited to pre-scheduled visitors, including after-school program staff, as well as parent and community members who have been approved through the Volunteers in Public Schools (VIPS) program and have appointments. Parents registering their children for school also are allowed.
• All HISD visitors will be screened prior to entry and required to wear a mask while at all district schools and buildings. Visitors experiencing symptoms of a recognized communicable disease must stay home and will not be allowed on HISD premises.

• Wireless hotspot devices will be made available to any student who does not have access to broadband internet at home. Parents should contact their campus for technology needs.

• Yes. Digital resources and learning materials are still available to all students and staff through the HISD HUB. These resources include digital lessons in the HUB, Imagine Math, Imagine Language, MyOn, and MackinVIA.

• Transportation Services is resuming normal operations and bus service. Assigned seating will be required. Students must wear a mask, sanitize their hands, and scan their bus badge, and sit in assigned seats upon boarding. Buses will be cleaned and sanitized regularly with hospital-grade disinfectant as a precautionary measure. Each bus will be equipped with hand sanitizer, disinfectant, towels, and first aid supplies

• Nutrition Services is resuming normal operations and offerings. Nutrition Services staff provide breakfast in the classroom and lunch in the cafeteria, as well as snack and dinner service at select campuses. Assigned seating will be required for all students and masks must be worn at all times when not actively eating or drinking. When possible, students should be spaced out, using every other seat

• Campus curbside pickup for student meals is discontinued.

• Competitive food sales — food sold by schools, parent groups, booster clubs, and outside vendors — are prohibited.

• Competitions and practices, as well as extracurricular activities and performances, will take place following campus guidelines. Spectator capacity is limited to 50 percent at all indoor and outdoor competitions, and masks are required for attendees not actively competing at indoor events.

• Non-athletic field trips, including enrichment or curricular trips, are suspended for the fall semester

• Yes. All athletic competitions and practices and on-campus extracurricular activities are permitted following campus guidelines.

• TDLP is the district’s contingency plan for students with disabilities who have transitioned to temporary online learning due to COVID-19.

• Every student with disabilities who is enrolled on a physical HISD campus is eligible.

• TDLP is discussed and agreed-upon during the ARD-IEP committee meeting. It is an official ARD-IEP document and cannot be discussed or agreed upon outside of the ARD-IEP process.
• TDLP documents for students with disabilities include selected goals, accommodations, services that will be provided and the method of delivery (synchronous/asynchronous) to ensure continuity of learning while engaged in virtual instruction or remote conferencing.

• TDLP is not applicable when students with disabilities return to face-to-face instruction. Full execution of the IEP occurs upon the students return to face-to-face instruction.

• In-State Transfers: 30 days to conduct an ARD-IEP to address special education services for the incoming student. The TDLP must be addressed during the transfer ARD process. Students within the state of Texas, as a federal and state requirement, must have a virtual instruction or remote conferencing contingency plan or an ARD amendment to address student services. This document should accompany the incoming IEP. Should the need arise for virtual instruction or remote conferencing, execute with fidelity. This contingency plan/amendment must be executed and in place until the transfer ARD has been conducted.
• Out-of-State Transfers: For students receiving special education services that transfer from other states, the incoming IEP must be executed until the transfer ARD/IEP meeting occurs within the first 30 days of enrollment. These students may or may not have a virtual instruction or remote conferencing plan already in place. Should the need arise for the student to access virtual instruction or remote conferencing, the current IEP should be implemented to the maximum extent possible. An ARD/IEP meeting should be convened as soon as possible and a TDLP developed and reviewed. If special education services are not implemented during the period of virtual instruction or remote conferencing, then compensatory services should be considered at the next ARD/IEP meeting.

• All campuses are required to have a Student Health Isolation Pod (SHIP). This is a designated area where students can isolate separate from the school clinic. Students exhibiting symptoms of a recognized communicable disease must be placed in this isolation area, away from others, until picked up by a parent/guardian. The school nurse will initiate and complete the contact tracing process, documenting exposed, presumed, and confirmed COVID-19 cases in HISD’s electronic health record.

• If a student becomes infected with COVID-19, they must notify their campus, stay home and quarantine for 10 days from the onset of symptoms, and attend temporary online learning established by their campus.

• Students will not be counted absent as long as they attend four hours of temporary online learning each day.

• If a presumed or confirmed COVID-19 case is detected in a classroom, impacted students will be identified through the contact tracing process. Parents/caregivers of impacted students will be notified and provided with next steps related to quarantine and any other measures that should be taken. If quarantine is required, the student must stay home.

• If staff meeting any of the below three conditions, they must quarantine. If they are at work, they must leave immediately. Otherwise, they are instructed to remain at home and notify their direct supervisor.
  • Lab-confirmed COVID-19 case
  • Exhibiting symptoms of a recognized communicable disease
  • Exposed to either a confirmed or presumed positive COVID-19 case

• The health screening app vendor will initiate the contact tracing process.

• We do not anticipate school closures. However, should conditions change and an HISD school or building need to close, the determination will be made on a case-by-case basis by the Superintendent in consultation with HISD Health and Medical Services and the Houston Health Department. These decisions are based on all the evidence and totality of circumstances and in alignment with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance.