COVID-19 Numbers Grow In Jackson & Scott Counties
Gov. Eric Holcomb and state education officials on Thursday announced that all K-12 schools in Indiana will remain on remote learning through the remainder of the school year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The move, which extends the governor’s previous order to close schools until May 1 and cancels all academic testing for the rest of the school year, mandates that no in-person instruction take place at schools in Indiana and all schools in the state remain closed, said Indiana Superintendent of Public Education Jennifer McCormick during a press conference on Thursday.
The Indiana High School Athletic Association also has canceled all spring sports for the remainder of the school year.
“Today, I am announcing that all K-12 schools in Indiana shall provide instruction via remote learning for the remainder of the 2019-20 school year,” she said. “It’s going to take a collective effort to save lives, and schools must do their part.”
Schools will still need to meet the 160-day requirement for school instruction days, according to the executive order, although the state has given schools a 20-day waiver at the first announcement of remote learning.
Additionally, school corporations will need to submit a continuous learning plan to the state by April 17 that signals to families, students and policymakers the type of instruction taking place during remote learning, McCormick said.
The decision from state officials comes amid a statewide stay-at-home order that restricts non-essential business and travel in the state as the number of cases of COVID-19 continues to rise.
On March 19, when Holcomb announced the first order to close schools, there were 56 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Indiana, two deaths and one case each reported in Jackson and Scott Counties.
As of Wednesday, April 8, COVID-19 had been detected in all but 3 of Indiana’s 92 counties, with 5,943 confirmed cases and 203 deaths statewide. There are 46 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Jackson County with no deaths and 171 tests administered. In Scott County there have been 11 confirmed cased with two deaths and 99 tests administered.