Newsom: Schools unlikely to reopen before summer

Gov. Gavin Newsom and state education officials said Wednesday that public schools throughout the state are unlikely to open for the rest of the 2019-20 school year due to the novel coronavirus pandemic but classes are expected to remain in session.

With COVID-19 cases expected to continue rising at least through May, Newsom, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond and state Board of Education President Linda Darling-Hammond said that schools should remain closed through the end of the school year, with online learning programs, physical homework packets and other “distance learning” methods replacing traditional class time.