COLUMBUS, Ohio—All Ohio K-12 schools will be closed through the end of the school year because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, Gov. Mike DeWine announced Monday.

The governor previously ordered in-person classes to be canceled through May 1. But during his daily briefing, DeWine said remote learning will continue for the last few weeks of the school year to protect Ohio schoolchildren, teachers, and staff.

“We have flattened the curve, but it remains dangerous,” DeWine said, speaking from the Ohio Department of Public Safety’s headquarters in Columbus.

DeWine also said school officials advised him that, for continuity’s sake, it wouldn’t be worthwhile to send students back to class for the last few weeks of the school year.

The governor said he came to the decision after talking to teachers, parents, administrative staff, and Superintendent of Public Instruction Paolo DeMaria.

DeWine said he is “not in a position” yet to say whether schools will reopen at the start of the next school year in August.

However, the governor raised the possibility of “blended” learning next school year, in which students attend some classes in person and other classes remotely. “Each school district is going to be different,” DeWine said.

DeWine said he’s particularly worried about helping children with special development needs, health challenges, limited or no access to the internet, and a home life that isn’t supportive of them.

Last week, multiple teachers’ unions urged DeWine to keep schools closed through the end of the school year. “It does not seem practical that we can have a safe return to physical classrooms this school year,” said Ohio Federation of Teachers President Melissa Cropper in a statement.

In a follow-up statement Monday, Cropper said even though distance learning isn’t an adequate replacement for classroom instructions, DeWine’s decision was the “right call” to make.

“It protects the health and safety not just for students, staff and teachers, but for everyone in Ohio," Cropper stated. “We must remain focused on flattening the curve and slowing the spread of COVID-19 in Ohio.”

DeWine has kept schools closed since March 16. Since then, many parents have been juggling helping their kids with homeschooling, while trying to work from home. Schools have been providing meals for students out of school, and teachers have been learning to teach using Zoom and other online resources.

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