Gov. Gina Raimondo announced this week that the entire state will follow a standardized school year calendar that will begin for all cities and towns on Aug. 31.
Raimondo also announced that in-person learning will also start in the new school year, but that it will be different than it has been in years past. The governor said that all school districts must submit a plan to the state Department of Education that will allow for in-person learning, some component of distance learning and, if there is a setback in keeping the virus at bay, a plan for all students attending class online.
At her now thrice-weekly coronavirus press conference, Raimondo asked a rhetorical question: “How can you announce this now? How can you be so certain now?”
She answered, “The truth is I don’t know what Aug. 31 will look like. I have led based on science, data and facts and all public officials say you can reopen by Aug. 31 based on all the data we have. It will take an incredible amount of planning to get us there safely.” She said that districts need to plan for “nearly all the students being in school, a
