Topics Related to COVID-19

State Superintendent Mark Johnson today praised the efforts last week by schools and educators to respond to the COVID-19 crisis that has shuttered schools statewide, and he acknowledged that today’s decision to keep schools closed until May 15 will require even more from everyone – teachers, school staff, and families.

The North Carolina State Board of Education voted unanimously today to seek a one-year waiver from the U.S. Department of Education for federal student testing and accountability requirements for the 2019-20 school year because of school closures ordered to combat COVID-19.

While schools are closed to students, yellow school buses remain in operation in many areas of the state, delivering meals and instructional materials to students.

As you know, on March 14, 2020, Gov. Roy Cooper entered Executive Order No. 117 Prohibiting Mass Gatherings and Directing the Statewide Closure of K-12 Public Schools to Limit the Spread of COVID-19. Section 2 of the Executive Order directs that "all public schools close for students effective Monday, March 16, 2020, until March 30, 2020, unless extended beyond that date."