Move schooling to remote learning in Wylie ISD to manage deadly COVID-19 Surge to Omicron
Move schooling to remote learning in Wylie ISD to manage deadly COVID-19 Surge to Omicron
Why this petition matters
Hello all,
As of January 4, 2022, at 4:00 PM Central Standard Time,
There are 3,978,101 total COVID-19 cases in the State of Texas, as well as 44,431 newly confirmed COVID-19 cases on January 4th, 2022 in the State of Texas and 60 newly reported deaths. There are 9,122 of newly probable COVID-19 cases as well.
To add on, there are 118,909 current confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Collin County, 1,221 deaths, 30,089 probable cases, and currently 12,627 active cases in Collin County according to the data provided by Texas Department of State Health Services,135,121 have recovered from COVID-19 in Collin County. I have unable to find COVID-19 data for Wylie Texas, which itself is a problem, basing off of the data for Collin County, there has been a rise in cases.
(LAST REPORTED NUMBER OF DEATHS FOR COLLIN COUNTY FROM 1-3-2022 AT 9:30 AM CST)
The COVID-19 cases trend for Collin County from Texas Department of State Health Services are located here
The new omicron variant has devastated the country, and Texas itself.
Yet during a crisis like the one we are in, students all around the State of Texas are still having to attend school in the condition.
Right now, we are gambling our lives by students attending in-person education, by attending in-person school, super spreader events will occur, it is not a matter of when, but how to properly respond to it and prepare beforehand.
Why should students go to in-person learning in Wylie ISD when we are not even able to obtain and take COVID-19 tests in the first place? Why put our and everyone lives in danger by attending to a in-person education during this crisis?
To state that none of this matter is false and an understatement. On January 3rd and/or the 4th, the United States reached 1 million positive cases for COVID-19. A new record, it shows that this is not over with, and action must be taken immediately to prevent the Omicron Variant of COVID-19 from spreading in our schools to which a domino super spreader reaction would occur.
At the bottom of this petition, there are emails and phone numbers to contact the government officials who can achieve our goal of this petition, which is to protect us and represent what we really want.
Right now, our number one demand is to move all in-person schooling to online to prevent students and staff from getting COVID-19 and spreading it to others in all Wylie ISD schools, making the situation worse in Texas than it already is right now.
I would like to simply explain this. There will be people who disagree with the measure to move schooling to online simply because they like in-person school.
I love going to school in-person as it is indeed better, but everyone must understand that the situation is not normal, let's look at the current data provided by the news and google. Provided by the New York Times, On January 5th, 2022, there was 41,998 COVID-19 cases on a 7 day average. The trend shows a very dangerous significant increase that has led to this petition.
https://www.texastribune.org/2022/01/03/texas-covid-19-omicron/
https://www.fox4news.com/news/dallas-tarrant-counties-combine-for-12000-new-covid-19-cases-thursday
https://www.ktre.com/2022/01/07/covid-19-cases-children-increasing-throughout-east-texas/
https://www.fox7austin.com/news/as-covid-19-cases-increase-in-texas-test-availability-declines
The health of us and our peers is more important than your preference on how you want to do schooling, there will be no school to go back to if we are all dead, in the hospital, and have COVID-19. So please support us and work together as Texans and residents of Wylie to fight back against Omicron.
DISCLAIMER REGARDING NEW YORK TIMES COVID DATA
We the people demand and ask first to Wylie Mayor Matthew Porter, WISD Superintendent Dr David Vinson, WISD school board, and the Wylie City Council to
- Immediately switch all in-person schooling to remote learning to prevent the spread of the Omicron Variant,
- If the situation improves itself, enact mask mandates against in WISD Schools once again temporarily after returning to prevent COVID-19 from shutting down schools once again. Start testing all students, staff, and visitors weekly *or in case of visitor, a negative COVID-19 test when wanting to enter. Enact all other COVID-19 safety protocols.
- Create easily accessible options for the public to see COVID-19 data and more communicating to work with residents of Wylie to protect them and increase transparency. I could not find any info regarding cases, deaths and other information in Wylie at all, that needs to be changed. As seen at this website when I look up Wylie Covid-19 cases, the website does not help.
- I do know that as of right now it is outlawed to do required mask mandates, as well as vaccine, I ask you pressure the state, specifically Governor Greg Abbott and other officials to revoke these unsettling rules set. Use other COVID-19 protocols in the meantime. I have read that the federal government is willing to pay any district for allowing mask mandates which result in fines in Texas and other punishment, unsure if this is still the case, but if it does and you are willing to take the risk to which it does not harm the student's education, then go ahead, it is very courageous to do so.
- Help improve COVID-19 testing times and help maintain its accessibility,
- Keep in mind that Wylie Independent School District (WISD) enacted mask mandates for the 2020-2021 school year and has proven to work very efficiently
I dislike masks a lot, but we are in a difficult situation, and we must show our strength to push back against the Omicron Variant.
We must make the right decision to move schooling to remote to protect the publics' health.
I highly recommend seeing the data provided by the Texas Department of State Health Services for yourself here and clearly on the COVID-19 database.
It is clear that we are in a crisis, to all the people who I petitioned to, please listen, please protect us, we put our faith in you for a reason.
To everyone else, stay safe, we are in rough times right now, but we can do it, we have a voice, and now I am using it. Please share and sign this petition,
I wish to stay unknown; I will be posting updates to help our people and our state and fight back against the Omicron Variant.
It is outrageous that I must have to petition for this, my goal is strictly to only help people and myself, it doesn't matter about republican or democrat, what matters is protecting human life and doing the precautions to lower the tide.
It is very dangerous that it will become worse than what we suffered and experienced through 2020, we must fight and call to action to protect us from this deadly virus. With your help, we can do this and make sure our requests will be accepted. No red or blue, just humanity.
We cannot afford to lose more lives, especially when there is a way to prevent our children and others from getting COVID-19, and that is by moving in-person learning to remote learning.
Thank you, please share and sign this around.
As well, if the links do not work then search it up, one is from DSHS, and the other one is from Collin County Health Services.
Disclaimer regarding accuracy of the numbers provided, (directly from DSHS)
All Statistics are provided by DSHS, and it may not always be accurate.
The case counts for Dec. 31 – Jan. 4 include backlogged lab reports from last week (12/27 – 12/31). Due to the rapid increase in COVID-19 lab tests, the system that processes electronic lab reports and identifies new cases was running slower for three days last week. DSHS identified ways to streamline the algorithm that identifies new cases, which dramatically improved the system’s processing speed. The system will finish processing all lab reports older than one day on Tuesday, Jan. 4.
The specimen collection date for these lab reports are within the last week. Because the positivity rate measures the number of positive lab tests as a percentage of the total number of lab reports received, the slower processing speed did not affect the accuracy of the positivity rate.
Fatality data come from death certificates and may include both confirmed and probable cases.
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CONTACT INFORMATION FOR EVERYONE MENTIONED
Hi, after signing and sharing this petition, it would mean a lot to contact people who represent you to take action to protect ourselves from COVID-19 in this current crisis, I have provided tons of resources to people who you should contact, if you do not live in Collin County, please if you do not know who represents you, or you need to contact the Representative/official in your area please go to this website to find out and contact them.
Wylie City Council and Mayor Matthew Porter - 972-516-6010 , council@wylietexas.gov
Wylie Mayor Matthew Porter - matthew.porter@wylietexas.gov ,
Wylie Councilman David R. Duke (Place 1, term expires 2022) - david.duke@wylietexas.gov
Wylie Councilman Dave Strang (Place 2, term expires 2024) - dave.strang@wylietexas.gov
Wylie Mayor Pro Tem Jeff Forrester (term expires 2022) - jeff.forrester@wylietexas.gov
Wylie Councilman Scott Williams (Place 4, term expires 2024) - scott.williams@wylietexas.gov
Wylie Councilman Dr. Timothy T. Wallis (Place 5, term expires 2023) - Toby.Wallis@wylietexas.gov
Wylie Councilman Garrett Mize (Place 6, term expires 2023) - garrett.mize@wylietexas.gov
Wylie School Board President Stacie Smith (Place 1, term expires November 2022, elected 2018) - 972-429-2346 , stacie.smith@wylieisd.net
Wylie School Board Vice-President Matt Atkins (Place 4, term expires 2024, elected 2016) - 972-429-2345 , matt.atkins@wylieisd.net
Wylie School Board Secretary Kylie Reising (Place 4, term expires 2024, elected 2020) - 972-429-2343 , kylie.reising@wylieisd.net
Wylie School Board member Jacob Day (Place 6, term expires 2022, elected 2018) 972-429-2342 , jacob.day@wylieisd.net
Wylie School Board member Mitch Herzog (Place 2, term expires November 2022, elected 2011) - 972-429-2344 , mitch.herzog@wylieisd.net
Wylie School Board member Bill Howard (Place 3, term expires 2024, elected 2020) - 972-429-2341 , bill.howard@wylieisd.net
Wylie School Board member Heather Leggett (Place 5, term expires November 2022, elected 2010) - 972-429-2347 , heather.leggett@wylieisd.net
Wylie Independent School District Superintendent Dr. David Vinson (Joined July 2011) - 972-429-3005 , david.vinson@wylieisd.net
Current employment contract between Dr Vinson and the board of trustees (legally publicized already)
Executive Assistant to the Superintendent Rhonda Tracy - rhonda.tracy@wylieisd.net
Wylie ISD Human Resources - HR@wylieisd.net
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