NEWS UPDATE : School closures to continue into early April

After press time for this week’s issue, the state Department of Education announced the afternoon of March 23 that ‘’all schools in the commonwealth will remain closed through at least (Monday) April 6 as a result of the COVID-19 response efforts.’’

‘‘The closure order could be extended beyond April 6 if necessary to save lives and stop the spread of COVID-19,’’ the announcement stated.

‘‘When it’s determined that students can return to school, administrators, teachers and other staff will be given two days to prepare classrooms, set up cafeterias, schedule transportation and arrange other business operations. Students would return on the third day.’’

Also March 23, the state announced cancellation of standardized testing for students in career and technical education (CTE) programs for the 2019-20 school year. These include exams from the National Occupational Competency Testing Institute (NOCTI) and National Institute of Metalworking Skills (NIMS).