US Coronavirus Updates: Virginia schools will be closed now - Northam

Virginia schools will be closed for the remainder of the academic year, according to the latest announcement of Virginia Governor Ralph Northam.

Officials of Virginia schools are expected to reassure families that districts will draw a plan to make sure students can catch up with the curriculum.

Northam said during a press conference that the closures are “necessary” to combat the spread of coronavirus in the US. He also recognizes that the move may affect the lives of families with children in public and private schools.

The state and local school leaders will find a way to keep students on tract and help them fulfill their requirements for the rest of the school year.

Virginia officials hope to get a federal waiver for standardized testing requirements and make sure that students who were expected to graduate in 2020 still can, Northam explained.

“By tomorrow, the state Department of Education will issue guidance to help school divisions think through those decisions to ensure that every student is served equitably,” Northam said.

“I know this raises a lot of questions for parents and also for our students.”

Northam said that Virginia will provide emergency child-care services led by employees from public schools and private daycare centers.

He added the departments of social services and education would release guidelines on the matter soon. "We must rally together,” Northam said.

“We all have questions,” Arlington Public Schools interim superintendent Cintia Z. Johnson wrote in an email to families of students. “It is unfortunate it has come to this.”

Meanwhile, Scott Brabrand, the superintendent of Fairfax County Public Schools, also told families through emails that the school board would conduct an emergency session Monday afternoon.

“We are navigating uncharted waters,” Brabrand wrote. “I know that we will persevere through this difficult time together.”