Bangs superintendent Dr. Joshua Martin on Monday issued an eight-minute statement through the Bangs ISD Facebook page discussing plans for the start of the 2020-21 school year.

Current plans are for the school year to begin Aug. 19 and both in-person and remote learning options will be available.

“We’re very excited to open the doors Aug. 19,” Martin said. “That’s our plan, to have a traditional start and capitalize on the excitement of the students and teachers and start getting some normalcy to our lives. With that said, we understand not all parents are comfortable sending their students to school right now so there will be an online option.

“A couple of things about the online option: first off, if you are considering the online option for your student, could you please contact your building principal. A couple things that does is it helps us with numbers and it also helps you get all the information you need prior to making that decision.”

Once a student chooses in-person or remote learning, that student will be required to stick with the decision for at least a six-week grading cycle.

“It’s not good for teachers and students to be passing around between the two platforms,” Martin said. “So if you do choose the online option you will be committing for six weeks.”

Also, students taking part in remote learning will be required to turn in assignments on a daily basis.

“(Online) students will be held accountable to the standard grading policy,” Martin said. “There will be a different level of accountability for this online learning prior to when everybody shut down after spring break of last year. That was more of a scramble to get things done. With this setting at the start of the school year, students will be held to the standard Bangs ISD grading policy.

“Also, attendance will be taken differently this year. The state has set it up where in order to gain attendance students are going to have to turn in work daily. We’ll have platforms through our Google platforms more than likely to get that done. In order for the districts to grant a student attendance, they’re going to have to show they did work that day and turn something in each and every day. That’s important because students are going to have to, whether they’re doing remote learning or in-district learning, all students will be held accountable to compulsory attendance which requires them to be in school and miss no more than 17 days.”

In regard to extracurricular activities, only students taking part in-person learning will be allowed to participate.

“We are requiring, just as the schools in the district and the schools in the area, in order to participate in football, volleyball, band, things like that, students are going to be required to be in school to participate,” Martin said. “Students participating remotely, in discussions we’ve had, there’s too many risks involved because you’re not going through your conditioning and all the things to make sure you’re safe when you compete.”

Bangs is also adding 20 minutes to each school day – 10 at the beginning and 10 at the end – in an effort to add more make-up days, if needed, due to COVID. Bangs originally had four make-up days on the schedule. The bell schedule for each class day can be found on the Bangs ISD website, bangsisd.net.

“The (Texas) Commissioner of Education, Mr. (Mike) Morath, he came out and told districts we will no longer be able to turn in missed day waivers if we were have to shut down for COVID,” Martin said. “With that being said, what we have done to make sure our students aren’t going to school in the summer to make up days is added 20 minutes to the school day, 10 minutes at the start and 10 minutes at the end, for all students. What that does is that gives us 13 days that we can use for COVID shutdown days. What that does is help our kids, and teachers as well, from having to make up days in June.”

Martin also added that students in the fourth grade and up will be required to wear masks as long as the governor’s executive order remains in place.

“People have some strong opinions on masks, but Bangs ISD will comply with the governor’s executive order,” Martin said. “It is not a decision we have made as a district, but it is one we have to comply with. All students in grades 4 and up, basically 10 years and older, will be required to wear masks during the school day. That does not take into times when students are eating or exercising. The state has allotted us some masks we will be picking up later this week, but if you want to buy your own and decorate them that is fine with us, as long as they are appropriate. We will only be requiring masks as long as it is an executive order from the governor of Texas.”

Martin also said Bangs was “operating under the assumption right now that all fall sports are going to be allowed to proceed.”

The UIL announced Tuesday morning that all schools in Class 4A and under will begin preseason practices Aug. 3 as originally scheduled.