Students — Have a great summer. Get ready to see your friends back at school on August 31.”

Gov. Gina Raimondo

Distance learning has been a great success, but it is time to get back to school, Gov. Gina Raimondo announced at Wednesday's coronavirus press briefing, a session devoted almost entirely to schools.

“Today I am setting the goal that we in Rhode Island will return to full in-person school this fall,” the governor said. Opening day will be Aug. 31.

To that end, the Rhode Island Department of Education will work with districts to plan “for many different contingencies. We will be working our tails off all summer” to make sure that the opening is safe for students and staff alike.

School will reopen, she said, but it will look different in ways that will likely include:

• A lot more cleaning of schools inside and out;

• Students' desks will be further apart;

• Staggered start times are possible;

• Fewer kids on the bus — and more buses;

• Mask wearing will likely be required;

• No one can go into a school building sick. The governor said that, “We have all sent our kids to school with sniffles. We can't do that any more.” And, “We pride ourselves on perfect attendance. That logic is going to have to change."

• We will continue to rely on distance learning for the rest of next year — in part for children who are sick or in quarantine, but also on teacher professional days and those days that used to be known as snow days.

“I want you to have confidence that you can do this, too,” Gov. Raimondo said, by building on what we have learned together about how to leverage distance learning. It's “not just the new normal, (but) something even better.”

The transition is possible, she said, because of the sacrifices made to help Rhode Island get through the worst of the virus in better shape than most places. Although she cautioned that the virus is by no means gone or defeated, she said the state's health experts now believe it will be safe to return to school this fall. 
By then the state should be in or past Phase 3 of the recovery program.

Districts: Plans and deadlines

School districts, working with the state, must plan for opening with three main contingencies in mind:

• First, plan for nearly all students being in school when school resumes at the end of August;

• Districts will also need a hybrid plan — a combination of in-school and distance learning;

• And God forbid there is a resurgence of the virus, you are going to have to go to distance learning.

Each district must now prepare a plan — “We will hold your hand every step of the way,” Gov. Raimondo said.

By next Friday, guidance will be posted regarding basic minimum health and safety standards. And districts are required to submit individual district plans by July 17.

The costs involved

“I also know that this is going to cost money,” the governor said, for everything from cleaning costs to buses and more.

To help meet those costs, she said the state will be distributing $42 million in Cares Act funding to school districts across the state “to enable a safe return … I suspect more resources may be needed.”

So, to students, the governor said, “Have a great summer. Get ready to see your friends back at school on Aug. 31.”

The school calendar

This will mark the first time Rhode Island has had a standard school calendar for all districts, RIDE Director Angelica Infante-Green said, calling that a tremendous achievement.

In addition to opening on Aug. 31, highlights include:

• Winter vacation — February 15-19

• Spring vacation — April 19-23

• Statewide professional development days — Sept. 21, Oct. 19, Nov. 16, Dec. 14, Jan. 25, March 15, April 12, May 17. These will not be days off for students, who will use these times for distance learning.

• “Snow days are gone” — replaced by distance learning.

• School will end on the 180^th day of learning, which now appears to be June 16.

At the onset of her remarks, the governor called on students to “finish strong” and thanked all involved for what she called a remarkable transition to distance learning. “We did not miss a single day of school … You have done it better than any other state I know of.”

But , she added, “There is no substitute for in-person learning,” for students but also for their parents and the economy, which needs those parents focused on work once more.

Four additional deaths

The state reported Wednesday that there had been 66 new confirmed coronavirus cases and four fatalities, for a total of 812 deaths in the state so far. There were 148 people in the hospital with the virus, 27 in intensive care and 16 on ventilators.

Of the four who died, two were in their 80s, and two were in their 90s.

Governor tested — negative

Gov. Raimondo said that both she and her husband were tested for COVID-19 after the weekend and the tests came back negative. She urged people who are symptom free, and also anyone who attended one of the protests, to get tested free of charge – make an appoint via portal.ri.gov

New benefits

Acknowledging that some have been hit harder than others by the pandemic, the governor said that for the first time SNAP participants in Rhode Island will be able to buy their groceries online. She said this will help those, especially senior citizens, who are afraid to go to grocery stores.

And she announced an added $550 benefit for those receiving RIWorks benefits.

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