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Texas News
Paris ISD makes masks part of dress code to get around Gov. Abbott’s order
Several school districts in Texas have sought to require masks amid an increase in Covid-19 cases. Gov. Greg Abbott has tried to ban mask mandates.

A small Texas school district has made facial coverings part of its dress code, in a bid to get around Gov. Greg Abbott’s executive order banning mask mandates.

The board of the Paris Independent School District, which has about 4,000 students, said in a statement Tuesday that the governor’s order does not usurp its ability to manage schools.
Flurry of conflicting legal battles against Texas’ mask mandate ban complicates schools’ start
President Biden thanks Dallas superintendent for standing up for kids on mask mandates

A patchwork of lawsuits, temporary restraining orders and court hearings is sparking confusion over mask mandates as families prepare to send their children back to school.

Now a new temporary restraining order issued late Sunday night could give Texas school districts the ability to enact their own mandates, though state officials vowed to fight it. Richardson ISD used this order to justify keeping its mask mandate in place.
A conversation with the SAISD superintendent about masks and vaccines
We’re continuing to inform you about what parents can expect this school year. One of the biggest districts, San Antonio ISD, is back in session. We were able to talk to the District Superintendent Pedro Martinez.

He says the students, teachers and staff had had good energy as they close their first week of school.

Martinez said a large percentage of staff are vaccinated, including community members. But he said this month and next month they’re concentrating on vaccine efforts for children who are eligible to receive the vaccine.
Across Texas, frantic parents search for options to keep kids safe in school
For the second straight year, schools must worry about keeping their staff and their children safe and ensure that they’re providing the best possible education during a pandemic that has killed more than 50,000 Texans.

Heather Robertson has been on lockdown since March 2020. While restaurants, stadiums and stores have reopened across the state, Robertson and her Sugar Land family have not been afforded the comfort of pre-pandemic life.
At Space Center Houston ‘Awe and Wonder’ are Keeping Kids Connected to STEM Education After Pandemic Stifled Hands-On Learning
Gabrielle Maximos doesn’t want to be an astronaut; she wants to be an obstetrician. But that doesn’t mean she’s any less excited to be steering an underwater drone to simulate an uncrewed mission in zero-gravity.

“(Space) is an interest that most people enjoy,” Maximos said, “Everybody has a little curiosity in it whether it’s a little bit or a lot.”

Maximos, 14, along with a couple dozen other high school students, spent one Thursday in August at the Williams Indoor Pool, tucked in a cozy neighborhood just a few miles from Space Center Houston, the official visitor center of NASA Johnson Space Center. It’s the same pool where the last two classes of NASA astronauts have obtained their SCUBA licensing, a mandatory component of astronaut training.
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Supporting Your Career
5 opening lines for your cover letter that will set you apart
Resumes tend to steal much of the limelight when you are preparing to apply for a new job, but in many cases, the cover letter is the first thing a manager will read. Or worse, the dreaded scanning software — also known as the ATS — will decide if you make it to the shortlist of candidates based on how well you wrote your cover letter.

Before we get to the examples, there are a few key components to your first sentence that you need to keep in mind.
National News
Cardona: Mask mandate bans could be civil rights, discrimination issue
The announcement follows similar letters sent to Florida and Texas by Cardona on Friday. In those letters, he suggested governors’ executive orders prohibiting mask mandates in schools could run afoul of the requirements set by the U.S. Department of Education for using federal funds provided under the American Rescue Plan to create plans for a safe return to in-person instruction.

States restricting superintendents’ ability to enforce mask-wearing requirements “may infringe upon a school district’s authority” as they plan for fall, he said.
A National Call For College COVID Safe Zones: How Higher Education Leaders Can Accelerate America’s Vaccination Push — and Keep Their Campuses Open
As students return to colleges and universities this fall, the highly communicable Delta variant of COVID-19 creates unexpected challenges to keep campuses safe and open. Higher education leaders now need to respond rapidly to protect their students, staff, faculty, and people with whom they come in contact.

Everyone recognizes the benefits of in-person learning, but to get there requires some tough and important decisions. Former officials from the last five Administrations and health experts have joined together across political parties and sectors to lay out the best response by creating #COVIDSafeZones.
School officials say they have no regrets amid mask mandate tensions
The debate over mask mandates has put local school officials in a precarious position as the number of coronavirus cases in some states surge to record levels. 

Leaders in states like Florida and Texas have come out against the use of masks mandates, with some governors going as far as to ban such measures in public schools. However, some school boards have voted overwhelmingly to defy these limits, instituting mask mandates for students, teachers and staff. 
10 top concepts schools should keep in mind when designing outdoor classrooms
Outdoor learning is magical. Moving beyond the four walls of a classroom is an activity students will look forward to for weeks. Connecting with natural phenomena can make stepping outside the most memorable experience of a student’s time in school.

But these are not the only reasons behind districts’ surging interest in building outdoor classrooms and learning spaces. For example, outdoor learning will be a key tool in helping kids recover from the disruptions of COVID, says Shaun MacDonald Hawke, an Outdoor and Marine Science Field Study project director for the Los Angeles County Office of Education.
Eugenio Derbez inspires a teen to find her own path in the movie ‘CODA’
“A lot of people struggle with their passion for what they want to do — and what their parents want them to be or become,” the Mexican actor said of the film.

Mexican actor, writer, director and producer Eugenio Derbez is widely known for his comedic roles in “Instructions Not Included,” “How to Be a Latin Lover” and “Overboard.” Now he hopes movie fans will be inspired by his new role as a music teacher who tries to help a 17-year-old daughter of deaf parents develop her singing voice.
Las Tienditas
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