We are starting the preliminary conversations to help our families connect, and support each other in caring for our City's youth.

As we are grouping together by risk level and children's ages to create small learning or academic pods, and shared care co-ops, Stronger Together is working to make meaningful connections. Through best practices, expert advice, and medical recommendations, we're compiling information as it comes in to make sure you're prepared, supported, and safe as you can be.

One key initiative is including those who cannot pay for alternative schooling in the conversation, the planning, and the movement.

The ability to pay for teachers, guides, nannies, or tutors is not universal. With so many who are out of or short of work, and with uncertain times ahead, paying for alternative options while school buildings are closed isn't possible for many Ausitn families. It is our belief that peoples' true nature will emerge when offered the chance, and now is a perfect time for us to show up for our fellow humans.

As pods develop, organizers can offer a spot to families who can't pay. Businesses and individuals with empty office space, guest homes, or even restaurants can participants, can open them up for use as pop-up schools. And innovative Austinites can share resources to help one another figure all of this out.

Right now, we're starting with collecting data, ideas, and resources. Offerings at the governmental level are coming up short, and it is increasingly more evident that it is up to our communities (namely mothers) to fill in the gaps as we navigate the changing educational and social landscape. Challenge accepted.

In the initial development phase, Stronger Together ATX is looking for...

• Established academic pods, co-ops, micro-schools, and childcare centers that have space for a school-aged child to attend at no cost, or in exchange for a non-monetary contribution of skill or service.

• Families who are looking for, but cannot pay for, alternative care options when school starts remotely this Fall.

• Working parents who need support to manage their child(ren)'s needs during school closures (either now, or when they inevitably happen in the future.)

• Businesses that have the space for use as a pop-up school, or that want to help offset childcare costs for their employees.

• Individuals willing to donate time or other resources to furthering the Stronger Together mission of supporting Austin working families.

**Developments will depend on current local, state, and federal orders related to COVID-19.**

Learning or Academic Pods are small groups of students that are typically grouped by age or grade level, and designed to facilitate schooling. There is a teacher or guide (or more than one, depending on the group's size and needs) and they follow either their own curriculum or one decided on by the participating families. Currently, Pods are forming to help students learn while following their public school's online curriculum as well.

These types of groups aren't new, but are gaining popularity as families search for ways to care for their kids when school buildings are closed, and learning is primarily online. They may be as formal as a licensed Micro-school, or formed out of necessity by a stay-at-home Mom and her neighbors.

Initially, this model was more broadly explored as a safer alternative to in-person schooling. Now, as there will be no in-person school options this Fall, the need to support our children in this way has become more immediate.

As has the reality that many families cannot afford to hire a teacher or guide, or buy their way into a Learning Pod.

As we establish Pods to meet our needs, there are best practices, planning tools, ethical and legal considerations, and a host of other moving parts that can make planning exhausting to say the least. Stronger Together is compiling a database of information to help you get informed, feel supported, and stay safe.

Click on the links below to fill out our initial surveys that will help us craft programs that meet the emerging needs of Austin families.