Above: Today’s Covid-19 taskforce press conference, addressing when schools will reopen.
RALEIGH — North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper announced Friday that he and top state education officials had made the “tough decision” to keep schools closed through the end of the traditional school year.
Cooper and Superintendent of Public Instruction Mark Johnson first announced the closure on Saturday, March 14. The governor’s order initially closed schools through March, but was later extended to May 15.
Summer camp, summer schools, and year-round schools opening in the summer months would depend on evaluating the key data points Cooper and Dr. Mandy Cohen, secretary of Department of Health and Human Services, announced on Thursday. According to Cohen and Cooper, the state will look for case numbers, hospitalizations, and other metrics to level off and decrease before beginning to relax restrictions — a process that will likely carry on into June and July.
Cooper noted that there will be increased precautions and restrictions when traditional schools start the next academic year in Fall 2020. Officials also noted there would be ongoing ‘bi-partisan’ work to support distance learning, school lunch programs, and supporting education employees.
This is a developing story. It will be updated as more information is made available.
