This month, we shifted our usual monthly webinar to make space for colleagues to learn from one another and discuss educator resources for COVID-19. More than 600 people registered to join the conversation. If you weren’t able to join the discussion live, watch the recording:

View slides here.

Here are all of the great tools and resources on how to help students during COVID-19:

Texas OnCourse COVID Resources for Remote Learning

• Texas OnCourse COVID-19 Resource Roundup for Students

Videos, digital handouts, career assessments, and more links for educators to share directly with students while the school doors are closed. Find college and career lessons from the Texas OnCourse team and other education partners.  

• Texas OnCourse COVID-19 Resource Roundup for Educators

Resources for remote advising and current information from all major Texas education agencies and education service providers. Regularly updated with new links.

• Staying on Course for College and Career during COVID-19

Everything educators need to know about helping students stay on course for post secondary success during COVID-19.

Many thanks to our leader fellows: Jenny Patrick, counselor from Bangs High School in Bangs ISD, and Will Collins, counselor from Kingwood High School in Humble ISD. Jenny and Will are paving the way by using virtual learning tools to stay connected with their students and families, before and after the COVID-19 crisis. Here is a list of tools mentioned to enhance their digital communication practices: 

• Explore careers and endorsements from home with MapMyGrad 
• Stay connected using Google Classroom (check with your district) 
• Text important info using Remind 
• Record short videos and share less text with Screencastify 
• Build useful newsletters with Smore templates 
• Use Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube to connect digitally 
• Don’t forget to check out Conversations with Collins by subscribing to Kingwood AV 

The Texas Education Agency has provided swift response during COVID-19, and frequent updates can be found on their Guidance and Updates page. Here you’ll see direction for school leaders on the following topics: 

• 2019–2020 Accountability Waiver
• STAAR testing cancellations
• Guidance on Grading and Graduation and Individual Graduation Committees  
• Test Administrations

During the webinar, counselors and advisors expressed shared concern over many of the same issues right now with remote learning. The Region 13 Educational Service Center Virtual Counselor Toolbox is a great resource for counselors, and it covers topics ranging from ethical guidelines to zoom tutorials.