Following the recent extension by Gov. Jay Inslee’s stay-at-home order in Washington state through at least early May, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Chris Reykdal admitted it will be tough to expect students to be able to return to school during the current academic year.
“I don’t know if we’re coming back to school this year, and I want to be honest about that,” Reykdal said during a Q&A video on the OSPI YouTube channel.
“It’s going to be really tough to do because we want to make sure people are safe, and if we rush back to school and put all of us in tight classrooms and bring everyone back into our buildings, there’s a chance that our caseload peaks back up again. And that would absolutely be the worst thing for public health,” Reykdal added.
Washington schools have been closed since March 17 through an originally-planned April 24 end date. However, the recent extension of Gov. Inslee’s statewide stay-at-home-order suggests schools are unlikely to resume prior to May.
Reykdal will be joining Gov. Inslee during a press conference at the State Capitol Monday at 2:30 p.m. regarding the state’s COVID-19 response.
Reykdal says he will support whatever decision Gov. Inslee will make.
Additionally during the Q&A, Reykdal addressed in the event of extended closure, high school seniors would still be on track to graduate.
“They have requirements by the state for certain credits and those are moving forward and they’re being engaged,” Reykdal said. “Teachers are going to make independent decisions about those students and their knowledge and their ability to meet standards and our state board of education is poised to waive some of those credits for students who absolutely need that.”
