TEA TO PROVIDE SCHOOL DISTRICTS WITH PPE
SUPPLIES TO BE DELIVERED STARTING IN MID-JULY, EARLY AUGUST
Later this summer, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) will begin providing personal protective equipment (PPE) to school districts to use for the next school year.
The TEA has ordered 50,000,000 disposable masks, 10,000,000 gloves, 40,000 thermometers, and 500,000 gallons of hand sanitizer for school districts across the state, and is also working on ordering 12,500,000 reusable masks and a to-be-determined amount of face shields and desk dividers.
Most districts will receive their supplies from their ESC Region Service Center, while larger districts will receive PPE shipments directly. The amount allocated to school districts is based on total enrollment and need.
Brenham ISD Assistant Superintendent of Operations Paul Aschenbeck said Brenham ISD’s supply allotment will include 45,888 disposable masks, 19,716 sets of gloves, 37 thermometers, and 472 gallons of hand sanitizer. He said districts have the option fill out a survey to request a lower allotment, but Brenham ISD will “accept anything they will give us”. He said it remains to be seen how the shipment from the TEA will affect the district’s current inventory of supplies established by vendors the district orders from.
Burton ISD, who according to Superintendent Dr. Edna Kennedy has been purchasing its own supplies as needed, is slated to receive 4,416 disposable masks, 2,263 gloves, three thermometers, and 45 gallons of hand sanitizer from the TEA.
Aschenbeck said he is expecting the TEA to start delivering supplies around mid-July or early August, and is also looking to hear additional direction soon from the TEA on the reopening of schools.
A full breakdown of the supplies being distributed to school districts across the state can be seen here.