President’s Message

“I’m so proud of the teachers, paraprofessionals and administrators across the state who have made it their mission to love our students and colleagues, making sure they have all the support they need during this health emergency.”

I will also take a moment to congratulate those of who have made the transition to remote instruction. Our incredible educators and administrators (I am sure just like yours) created training programs and developed lesson plans in about one week’s time. It has been a hectic, but an extremely organized transformation. I hope your students and families have been open to adopting this new way of learning as we all enter this new adventure together. Another massive undertaking is the work to provide meals for our students. The TEA reported a 60.6% Economically Disadvantaged students in Texas for the 2018-19 school year. We can proudly say our school districts are doing everything they possibly can to make sure our students have meals on a consistent basis. The creative ways to make sure food is available have simply amazed me!! The question for us regarding schools being closed to traditional instruction has now been answered. As you now know Governor Abbott made his announcement to close schools for the remainder of the school 2019-20 academic school year. While this was disappointing and heartbreaking for us as educators, we understand the reasons for the closure. It brings comfort to know the decision was made in both the best interest of health and safety for both students and staffs. TASPA is also monitoring the COVID-19 situation and reviewing all options as it relates to our upcoming TASPA Summer and TASPA Fall Support Staff Conferences. Your Executive Board is exploring all options, however, we need to keep in mind the contracts are already in place and may not be able to be modified. Please be watching for communication from us regarding this very important issue as we may seek input on the topic as those dates draw close.

Greetings TASPA members! First and foremost, I hope each of you and your families are as safe as you can possibly be given our new state of affairs in your district, our state, our country and even our world. Who would have thought after the last time we were together, we would be where we are today? COVID-19 has brought our world (literally) into another era in history. I know many of you have been thrust into performing tasks which are not listed on your job description and also tasks you would normally require a face-to-face meeting in order to complete to now happen over an internet chat platform. Just as a reminder, TASPA created a “COVID-19 HR Related Issues” on the TASPA Forum page of our website. You can see the current posts by logging in to your account and following the “Community” link to the “Forum” page. I hope you will use this a great way to share ALL of the innovative ideas that have been created in the response to the virus.

I’m so proud of the teachers, paraprofessionals and administrators across the state who have made it their mission to love our students and colleagues, making sure they have all the support they need during this health emergency. I have seen mobile pep rallies, sidewalk chalk messaging, yard signs, and videos that have been uplifting for everyone involved.

Please do not forget my challenge to you to meet (now virtually) at least five new members this year before we get back to our 2020 Winter Conference. To all of you - thank you for being a part of the TASPA family. You are the reason this organization is special. Please continue to be safe and remember- Wash your hands, don’t touch your face and stay home if you are ill! COVID-19 may have set us back- but WE WILL BE BACK AND WITH MORE PASSION TO DO OUR JOBS THAN EVER BEFORE! Rick