NEW ORLEANS — New Orleans public school students will go back to distance learning due to rising coronavirus numbers in the city.
The change will last until at least Jan. 21, the school system announced late Monday.
The system said that schools that are open for in-person learning for the second semester can continue until Thursday, Jan. 7, in order to allow parents and families to adjust to the change.
The system cited a "significant jump in the rate of positive cases over the past few days, indicating a worsening trend."
“All along, we have taken a very measured approach as we respond to the shifting circumstances of this pandemic,” NOLA-PS Superintendent Dr. Henderson Lewis, Jr. said. “Citywide data over the past few days has shown a dramatic uptick in positivity rates, and so, based upon the advice of our health advisors, we felt we had to make the very unfortunate but necessary decision to return to distance learning to keep our students, staff, teachers and community safe. We recognize this will be extremely difficult for our families and hope that everyone takes the necessary precautions to reverse the spread of this terrible virus. I want all of us across NOLA Public Schools to stay close and be in constant communication as we tackle this next challenge. We’re one team, and we’ll get through this together.”
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