Many Valley school districts are getting ready to open their doors to students and staff, but not everyone is ready for in-person learning.

SEE HOW OTHER SCHOOLS ARE GETTING READY FOR THE SCHOOL YEAR. 

Schools can still do distance learning, but it will not be funded by the state. Channel 5’s Crystal Martinez explains how one district is giving parents another option.

Dr. Tony Lara, superintendent of South Texas Independent School District, says classrooms are implementing safety measures to reopen, like putting up plastic dividers.

"We are prepared to come back 100 percent face-to-face, but we've also started a new initiative," Dr. Lara said.

That initiative being a virtual academy. With the state no longer supports virtual learning financially, the board approved the allocation of local funds and will use elementary and secondary school emergency relief grants, if needed.

"We are offering those students, who may not necessarily be ready to come back, or those students who thrive in that type of setting, the option to do so," Dr. Lara said.

The virtual academy is for sixth through ninth graders attending South Texas ISD. And Dr. Lara says it will look a lot different than it did over the course of the pandemic.

"It's going to be a very flexible schedule,” Dr. Lara said. "It won't be sitting in front of a computer screen for eight hours a day."

Dr. Lara says virtual learning might be a way of the future and plans to slowly add more grade levels over time.

"We will provide them opportunities to come in for socialization, for athletics, for academic competitions,” Dr. Lara said. “So we're trying to find that balance for them."

Students attending the virtual academy will still get a chance to interact with others by being allowed to participate in sports and other extracurricular activities.