Lubbock ISD Superintendent Dr. Kathy Rollo Talks Active COVID-19 Cases, Substitute Shortage & Getting Students Back on Track

Tuesday on KFYO Mornings with Dave King and Matt Martin, Lubbock Independent School District Superintendent (Lubbock ISD) Dr. Kathy Rollo joined Dave and Matt to talk about the coronavirus numbers, a possible Thanksgiving surge, the ongoing substitute teacher shortage, virtual learning, getting students back on track, and more.

Dr. Rollo started the discussion by talking about the COVID-19 numbers, which recently included herself.

There are currently 129 active cases, including staff and students, in Lubbock ISD. Dr. Rollo said that before the holiday, there were more students getting the coronavirus and that those trends continued through yesterday. Today, the numbers seem to have decreased.

The school district also has a number of rapid tests available for both staff and students. Additionally, Dr. Rollo said that her bout with the virus has given her empathy for those who have it and those who will still get it. When asked if she's worried about a surge of those who could have contracted COVID-19 during the Thanksgiving holiday, Dr. Rollo said that everyone in the country is a little concerned about such a thing, but that the people she's spoken to claim to have been in small groups and acted responsibly.

Another topic discussed by Dr. Rollo was the district's continued shortage of substitute teachers. She explained that with the ongoing pandemic, many of their older substitute teachers are no longer available to come in and that has has been a large challenge. Schools are moving students around to available substitutes. Dr. Rollo said that they have raised pay for both people with college degrees and retired teachers, and encouraged people to go to the Lubbock ISD website for more info.

The superintendent also discussed the state of virtual learning in Lubbock ISD schools.

When asked if any kids have come from other school districts that have ended virtual learning to sign up at Lubbock ISD, she said that they have had about 40 kids do so. But overall, the state of virtual learning is still having problems, with many kids still not doing their school work.

They were, however, able to make more students do their work by both sending out report cards to parents, as well as shutting down the chromebooks of the students who were not doing their work, with reactivation requiring parents to call the schools.

Dr. Rollo went on to say that she's aware that a majority of kids are going to have gaps in their education that the schools will have to work hard to fill, especially after the coronavirus pandemic is over. For the time being, they are pushing for kids to start attending classes in person again.

Listen to the full interview with Dr. Kathy Rollo in the video above.

KFYO Mornings with Dave King & Matt Martin airs weekday mornings live, from 6:00 AM to 8:30 AM on News/Talk 95.1 FM and 790 AM KFYO, online at KFYO.com, & on the free KFYO app.