(WHDH) — More local school districts are choosing to reopen remotely in the fall after a recent uptick in coronavirus cases has been reported statewide.
Lynn Public Schools is the latest school district in the state to start fully remote in the fall until at least Nov. 20. The decision was made following a unanimous school committee vote Wednesday night.
On Thursday, Mayor Thomas McGee, who chairs the school committee, said, “We are completely overcrowded in good times and the idea that we can bring students back into our school buildings under the circumstances with the uptick in the state and the uptick we have seen in the city of Lynn over the last seven to 10 days.”
McGee said that in the end, the hybrid option did not make sense for their district.
In Revere, the school committee held an emergency meeting Thursday morning and decided all schools will begin remotely until the worsening virus numbers improve.
Mayor Brian Arrigo cited the recent uptick in COVID-19 cases as a major factor.
“We are most concerned about out recent uptick in positive cases and increasing positive test rates that are much higher than the states average,” Arrigo said. “In fact, the city of Revere is the second-highest in the state’s Commonwealth.”
Quincy’s 850 public school teachers took a stand and penned a letter to the school committee Wednesday night. The Quincy Education Association urged the committee to adopt, “a remote learning model … with the aim of phasing in a hybrid learning model…”
The teachers said it’s “the only plan at this time that will ensure the health and safety of students, educators, and staff.”
Quincy’s Mayor Thomas Koch said, “I get the feeling that hybrid is probably the way we are going to go but, you know, we are watching the data, we are watching the stats, looking at things medically and if things start to tick up again, we may be forced to slow it down and go remote.”
Koch said he welcomes input from the teachers but a decision has not yet been made.
The president of the Quincy Education Association said 70 percent of the city’s teachers voted in favor of a remote learning start.
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