To quote a “Simpsons” classic, “Will someone please think of the children?” Nearly 100,000 children have tested positive for the coronavirus in the last two weeks of July, according to a new report from the American Academy of Pediatrics.
The association found more than 97,000 children tested positive for the virus from July 16 to July 30, CBS News reports.
In New York City, home to the nation’s largest school district, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced a return to in-person schooling this fall and promised officials “have worked incessantly to get this right.”
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“They’ve looked at examples from all over the world of what will keep the school community safe, and they’ve made a series of choices of how to do things from the health and safety lens first, while also making sure we can educate our kids,” de Blasio said in a Friday press conference.
He gave parents until Friday night to register students for in-person instruction, remote learning or a hybrid.
More than 25 children died of the coronavirus in July alone and pressure to get kids back into the classroom continues to grow, leaving school administrators across the country working to figure out how to keep children safe.
Some states have already reopened schools for learning, including that of Indiana and Georgia.
Those states are essentially pioneering what the “new normal” is for education during the pandemic.
Indiana’s Lawrence Township is cleaning school buses with a hospital-grade disinfectant spray for students who still need rides to school.
“You’re going to see a very clean and disinfected bus,” Transportation Director Matt Miles said. “We actually have fogging machines.”
However, educators are not expecting many students to get on the bus as 35% of children in the area are expected to learn remotely, while other school districts in the U.S. will not open at all.
We’ll keep you posted on any updates.
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