Since August of 2020, virtually everything returned to normal for students at Peaster Independent School District in Parker County (northwest of Weatherford).
They started the school year with in-person classes and students were not required to wear masks or social distance. In addition, extra-curricular activities resumed as well.
The result of it all?
The district superintendent says that most of the district’s 1,400 student are on track to finish the school year on grade level and they’ve managed to close the gap that occurred last year when the schools shut down.
Superintendent Lance Johnson tells CBS-Dallas:
“Our kids have thrived and our teachers have thrived. And it’s just been real eye opening to see how we’ve done things different than other schools…
Our teachers and our school board and our community just stood in solidarity to say you know what, we’re going to do what’s best for kids. And what’s best for kids is having them in school, learning, in a traditional school model…
…18 months ago what we’re doing to kids would’ve been criminal. And here we are fighting going back to that model, fighting letting kids be kids, and letting kids socialize and letting them have a normal school year.”
Johnson says he’s fielded calls from lawmakers and school officials interested to know how they did it.