All New Jersey schools will be closed for in-person instruction through the remainder of the 2019-20 academic year, Gov. Phil Murphy has announced.
The Press of Atlantic City reports that as of Monday, 45 other states had already announced that they would keep schools closed for the rest of the academic year. Murphy had previously stated that schools would remain closed at least through May 15.
“I had hoped that we could get back to a sense of normal by allowing our children to return to the schools they love and to be with their friends and classmates," Murphy says. "But the reality is we cannot safely reopen our schools to provide students and family or faculty and staff the confidence needed to allow for a return to in-person instruction."
Schools in New Jersey have been closed to students since mid-March in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. Instruction for the more than 600 public and private schools in the state has continued remotely.
Murphy said he understands the concerns of parents and school leaders, and the disappointment that the students will not be ending the school year with their friends.
“I also know that our graduating seniors were looking forward to their proms and walking across the stage to receive their diplomas in front of their families and friends,” Murphy says. “I still want to see them have those opportunities.”
He says the administration will work with districts to develop safe and creative ways to give the Class of 2020 a proper sendoff.
The Department of Education is leading stakeholder meetings to determine if summer educational programs, often held in schools, will go forward.
