Florida’s top education official ordered all schools to reopen for in-person instruction starting in August despite an alarming rise in coronavirus infections, The Washington Post reports.
Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran, who previously served as the Republican Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives, issued an order that “school districts and charter school governing boards must provide the full array of services that are required by law so that families who wish to educate their children in a brick and mortar school full time have the opportunity to do so.”
The order requires schools to provide full-time teaching “at least” five days a week for families who want it.
Trump pushes school reopenings:
“SCHOOLS MUST OPEN IN THE FALL!!!” President Donald Trump tweeted on Monday.
“Corrupt Joe Biden and the Democrats don’t want to open schools in the Fall for political reasons, not for health reasons!” he added. “They think it will help them in November. Wrong, the people get it!”
Education Secretary Betsy DeVos echoed Trump’s sentiment.
“Absolutely right, @POTUS! Learning must continue for all students. American education must be fully open and fully operational this fall!” she tweeted.
Teachers want safety:
“At the end of the day we want our schools open,” Fedrick Ingram, the head of the state’s largest teachers union, told the Post. “We want our schools open with safety in mind first and with the proper funding to provide those safety measures.”
