Governor Mike DeWine announced that Ohio schools have been granted permission from the Federal Government to keep feeding students while schools are shut down to hopefully slow the spread of COVID-19. He said arrangements will be made to deliver meals offsite to students in the form of grab and go meals. The arrangements will vary depending on the school district though he said he realized some districts will have more difficulties than others delivering meals. He also advised parents to take their kids out of daycare and to think twice about allowing grandparents to babysit.
Schools are currently scheduled to be shut down for the next three weeks, though DeWine said it could be for much longer if the situation requires. He says he probably misspoke when he called it an extended spring break, as students will be expected to continue their classwork.
He said arrangements will vary depending on the school district and their capacity to conduct online learning. Teachers and other personnel will still be expected to report to the school buildings.
“Each school is asked to do everything in their power to keep education going. It could be longer than three weeks. No matter how long this is, education needs to continue for young people,” DeWine said.
He said that the mild winter meant that many teachers still have calamity day lesson plans that haven’t been used yet. The Governor suggested families might use this time to explore the outdoors as long as they used caution and stayed six feet away from other people. He also said it was a great time for families to take advantage of Ohio’s participation in Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library to receive free books.
The governor said daycare facilities are not closing but that’s something that may happen in the future and parents should start looking at alternatives in case that happens. He said daycare poses a “unique risk.” He said if you are in a position economically that the medical community advises that people should remove children from daycare. Healthy children are at low risk from serious health problems from COVID-19 but they are potential carriers to those at risk. They also suggested that those using a daycare provider who is 60 or older might consider removing children from their care to protect the health of the caregiver. He said that those who have grandparents caring for their children should consider the potential danger.