Mid City Times

Coppell Independent School District (ISD) took numerous steps to return students to live learning, including wearing masks, establishing social distancing markers in the hallways, creating one-way directional pathways, providing additional hand sanitizers and emphasizing handwashing.  

“Many of our parents and guardians had to go back to work and needed their children back in the classroom,” said Brad Hunt, superintendent of Coppell ISD. “Many of our students, especially some of our special education learners, required services that need to be done on-site. We wanted our families to have a choice and to make this choice that was best for them and their circumstances.”

The Coppell ISD is among the Texas districts that opened brick-and-mortar classroom learning this fall despite the threat of COVID-19 after spending the summer developing a "return-to-learn" plan. 

Coppell ISD Superintendent Brad Hunt | Provided

“Our Return to School Task Force has been planning this for months and our first two weeks have gone extremely well," Hunt told the Mid-City Times. "I applaud our community for this accomplishment. I also don’t want to leave out how hard our distance learners and their parents who have been working hard as well. Our teachers have been working around the clock to ensure an exceptional educational experience for all students.”

When a staffer or student tests positive, district officials say they notify the school or building and send out a daily summary each weekday at 6 p.m. when a new positive case emerges. As of Sept. 18, Coppell ISD had eight active coronavirus cases.  

“We have a COVID-19 Response Team and our school administrators and nurses who perform contact tracing, notify close contacts who have to go on quarantine and track our active cases, those who are in isolation and those who are on quarantine,” said Amanda Simpson, director of communications with the Coppell ISD.

Coppell ISD is not deterred by its coronavirus cases, which are reported to the Dallas County Health Department and the Texas Education Agency.

“Everyone has done such an amazing job, and I am very proud of our district,” said Hunt. “I am very pleased that we were able to offer our families a choice of whether to have their children learn in person or remotely. I am also happy that we were able to take the necessary time this summer and listen to our teachers and staff members, students and family members to develop in an in person learning experience that put the safety of our students and educators first.”

He advises other superintendents of school districts planning to reopen to collaborate with other superintendents.

“We talk with each other and learn from what our colleagues are doing,” Hunt added. “Each one of us is working to do the same thing, what is best for the children we serve.”