Virginia’s schools will remain closed throughout the rest of the school year, Gov. Ralph Northam announced Monday afternoon.
Most area schools had previously announced they would be closed through April 12 due to the coronavirus outbreak, according to Inside NoVa. In addition to schools remaining close for the year, announced that certain types of businesses, like bowling alleys, gyms and theaters, must close in response to the coronavirus outbreak. His orders followed that of dozens of states where governors made orders to either place states under stay-at-home and shelter-in-place mandates.
"Today I'm directing all schools in Virginia to remain closed at least through the end of this academic year," the governor announced. "School closures are necessary to minimize the speed at which COVID-19 spreads and protect the capacity of our healthcare system. I know this raises a lot of questions for parents and also for our students."
Northam also announced Monday that the state announced that the number of people testing positive for the virus continues to rise and is now at 254 in Virginia, according to WTVR .
On Tuesday, the state’s Department of Education will issue guidance to help school divisions work through those issues and address equitability, Northam said.
“We’re already working on waivers to relieve testing requirements, and ensure that our students who were on track to graduate can do so. I understand that for many families, these closures present practical considerations of who will care for children during the day now that they are not in school.”
In recent days, school districts in Prince William, Loudoun, Fairfax and Stafford counties have alerted communities to staff, administrators or students who have tested positive for coronavirus.
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