There’s no way around it: The coronavirus upended the spring semester and possibly our summer, too. Like many of you, I have spent much of the past few months indoors, at my home, changing the way that I work and grappling with this new normal. What we’re facing is unprecedented and has created a lot of uncertainty. Much has changed during this spring, and much is still yet to change. 

For the first time in modern history, schools have been closed for months. But of course, “closed” doesn’t mean education stops. I know you are still working hard on behalf of your students and communities. Within a matter of days, the public education community rushed to completely re-invent how we deliver instruction, distribute educational technology, man curbside food distribution sites, and embrace technology like Zoom. The resiliency of public school educators is unmatched. Time and again, Texas educators have risen to the challenge, continuing to provide instruction, much-needed routine, and something close to normalcy for our state’s more than 5.4 million schoolchildren. 

ATPE sees you, ATPE thanks you, and ATPE couldn’t be prouder to support you. We hope pages 18–25 do justice to some of the amazing work ATPE members are doing during this crisis. 

Because circumstances sometimes seem to change every hour as we navigate this pandemic, it’s entirely possible events and information may have changed from the time this magazine went to press. For the most current information, make sure to visit our resource center for Texas educators at atpe.org/coronavirus. But we hope you enjoy learning about the Girls Who Code organization on pages 14–16, as well as previewing our first-ever virtual ATPE Summit on pages 26–31. We also kick off our yearlong celebration of ATPE’s 40th anniversary (page 32) and provide all the details you will need to continue your ATPE membership for the next school year (page 40). 

Know that ATPE is here for you. Stay safe and be well. 

Shannon Holmes 
ATPE Executive Director