Gov. Murphy: Students, teachers with health issues would still have remote school option in fall

Gov. Phil Murphy is now saying some teachers and students with health issues will have the option for remote learning next school year.

News 12 Staff

Mar 31, 2021, 9:23 AM

Updated 1,294 days ago

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Gov. Phil Murphy is now saying some teachers and students with health issues will have the option for remote learning next school year.
At a COVID-19 press briefing last week, the governor said all school districts would not be allowed to offer virtual learning for the next school year, even if parents requested it. But now, that's not entirely the case.
The governor clarified Tuesday on our Ask Governor Murphy show that students and teachers with health issues that could lead to a more severe COVID-19 case would still have a remote option, while everyone else would be back inside classrooms five days a week.
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"I did not intend to include folks who have some immunity or some other issue with their health where that could put them at risk,” says Gov. Murphy. “But I did mean that Monday through Friday, schools are open for business, and unless you've got some sort of health challenge of one sort or the other, we fully expect we're in business for school."
Since the start of the academic year, the state has reported 205 school outbreaks, resulting in 947 cases, and as of last week, only 90 districts were still remote-only.
The governor says he doesn't quite know when it comes to who would qualify and be allowed to participate in virtual learning, but that it will be up to districts to handle it.