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'Just to check on our students' | San Marcos CISD brings back students over increase in mental health-related issues

On Monday, San Marcos CISD required students to come back on campus unless they had a doctor's note or extenuating reason not to return.

SAN MARCOS, Texas — Most San Marcos CISD (SMCISD) students are now required to attend school in-person, unless they have a medical exemption or an extenuating circumstance not to learn on campus. 

District leaders said the change is meant to help students who were coping with mental health issues because SMCISD has seen students struggling in the last year. 

"We don't want them to feel alone. We want them to feel that they have thousands of district employees to support them, whether that be their teacher ... their custodian. They build connections with our staff, and we felt it was time to bring them back," said Andrew Fernandez, the SMCISD executive director of communications. 

SMCISD said 82% of students are back learning on-campus as of Monday. District leaders said because the number of coronavirus cases is declining, they're confident students are safe. SMCISD reports that 360 students were exempt from learning in-person. 

"Vaccinating 800 [people] plus of our staff was also a big reason why we felt it was time students could start returning," said Fernandez. 

Administrators want students to know there are resources available to help with the mental health impacts of the pandemic. The CDC reports that between April and October in 2020, more kids in the U.S. went to the doctor for mental health-related issues.

"Opening up our school buildings was not about testing. It was truly just to check on our students, see how they're doing and welcome them back before losing them for that summer break," said Fernandez.

The district said families should work with their child's principal to discuss the medical exemption process. The district said it will continue to follow COVID-19 safety protocols including social distancing, mask-wearing and sanitizing all areas of the school. 

Additional dividers and face coverings will also be available for all campuses. Read more about the district's safety plan.

SMCISD said it is highly recommended that families provide their own transportation to and from campus, but those that are unable should follow these steps:

  • From now until Sunday, April 4, at midnight, you can click here to sign your child up for transportation. This will guarantee bus services for your child.
  • Starting Monday, April 5, you can only request school bus transportation by calling the campus your child attends. 
  • If your child hasn't used school bus services in the past 10 days, they will need to be registered. 
  • If you call by the close of business on Tuesday, April 6, your child will receive transportation services starting on April 12. If you miss that deadline, your child will be routed for transportation starting no earlier than Thursday, April 15.
  • Once your child is routed, a transportation department associate will call you to provide the bus number, stop location and stop time for the morning and afternoon routes. Be aware that these calls may happen over the weekend on April 10 and 11.
  • Have your child report to the bus stop 5 to 10 minutes before the scheduled stop.
  • Students who previously agreed to a transfer will still need to provide their own transportation.

WATCH: San Marcos CISD returns to in-person learning

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