Schools adapt for return from break as COVID-19 cases surge

School and elected leaders say they are using the lessons and tools of the past two years to try to navigate the surge without long-term shutdowns.

Mask requirements are returning in some school districts that had dropped them. Some are planning to vastly ramp up virus testing among students and staff. And a small number of school systems are switching to remote learning – for just a short while, educators hope.

With coronavirus infections soaring, the return from schools’ winter break will be different than planned for some as administrators again tweak protocols and make real-time adjustments in response to the shifting pandemic. All are signaling a need to stay flexible.

“Change has been the only constant in this fight,” Newark Schools Superintendent Roger LeÁ³n wrote in a notice to parents before break. He announced Thursday that students will learn remotely for at least the first two weeks of the new year. The virus, LeÁ³n said, continues “to be a brutal, relentless and ruthless virus that rears its ugly head at inopportune times.”

Read more from The Associated Press.

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