House: HISD disease team ‘not disbanded’
Houston Independent School District superintendent Millard House II released a video Saturday confirming that the district’s “communicable disease team” is still fully operational as the district works to update its COVID-19 plan for the start of the new school year.
“As you all know, we’ve seen a rise in the wrong direction most recently, and it’s important for our community to understand we take very seriously the health and safety of our students, staff and community members to ensure that we have a strong and healthy start to our school year,” said House, who began work July 1.
“Contrary to what some reports have indicated, we have not disbanded our communicable disease team. We are continuing to work closely with those individuals that understand (the virus) and make certain that the safety of our community is A-1,” House said.
House did not specify exactly which reports suggested the team was being disbanded.
The video release comes weeks after House stated that classes would be held entirely inperson this fall, but that pledge came as the delta variant of COVID-19 was just starting to gain a foothold in the area.
In May, the district said it would comply with Gov. Greg Abbott’s executive order that banned public schools from requiring masks inside buildings after June 4.
Houston ISD spokeswoman Tejal Patel said an updated communicable disease plan “will be released in the coming weeks,” but did not say whether it would include a mask mandate or remote-learning options.
Since House’s announcement in early July, hospitalizations in Texas due to COVID-19 have more than doubled.
Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo raised the county’s threat level to “orange” Thursday, indicating a “significant” threat.