Tarrant County public health director suggests students return to virtual-learning only
FORT WORTH, Texas - With COVID-19 cases rising across Tarrant County schools, the county’s top health official is suggesting to send schools back to virtual-only learning.
Tarrant County has an 11% COVID-19 positivity rate, which is higher than the state average.
County health officials want all students back home and out of the classroom. Right now, there’s no sign of that happening.
Tens of thousands of students are attending school in-person in Tarrant County. A small number started in August. Many more joined in September and October. Fall sports were phased in.
On Tuesday, Tarrant County Public Health Director Dr. Vinny Taneja described a concerning future.
“Almost all the indicators are confirming that the data is not conducive for in-person learning. There's too much disease activity in our community,” he said. “That could lead to major outbreaks in the school setting if we continue in-person learning.”
Tarrant County has an 11% COVID-19 positivity rate and more than 1,100 virus cases among Tarrant County schools. That’s a 33% increase from a week ago.
When it comes to schools, Dr. Taneja's recommendation is to go to virtual learning only.
“That data dashboard turned red four weeks ago,” he said.
The dashboard keeps track of COVID-19 spread and recommendations. Just about every school district in the county has cases.
UT Southwestern Medical Center's new COVID-19 model is forecasting that hospitalizations in Tarrant and Dallas counties will increase in the next two weeks to early August levels.
The report says North Texas hospitalizations are up nearly 20% compared to one week ago and nearly 40% over two weeks.
Friday’s nationally televised football game between Denton Guyer and Southlake Carroll has been canceled because of COVID cases.
The Southlake Carroll COVID dashboard shows 40 active cases in the district made up of 25 students and 15 staff members. The district did not respond to our request for comment.
In reaction to Dr. Taneja’s comments, Arlington ISD Superintendent Dr. Marcello Cavazos said: “we will continue to consult with our local health experts to review all of our safety protocols to ensure individuals on our campuses are as safe as possible."
A Fort Worth ISD spokesperson said: "We are very aware of the extent of the virus in our community… We are maintaining the in-person and virtual models and can switch at any time the Board believes that to be in the best interest of our children."
It's up to each district to decide on a decision for if classes will remain hybrid or virtual-only.
Dr. Taneja says he stands by his recommendation to go virtual-only.
“Schools should be preparing for a virtual learning environment. As we head into fall, with the flu season going to be upon us, this is going to be a double situation to deal with,” he said. “They should be ready and prepared to go to a virtual learning environment.”
Tarrant County Judge Glen Whitley says he believes district leadership will do what’s best for students but would not give his opinion on if students should leave the classroom.