All Indiana schools will remain closed for remainder of school year

 

INDIANAPOLIS— All Indiana school building will remain closed to staff and students for the remainder of the school year.

The announcement was made during Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb’s press conference on Thursday.

Dr. Jennifer McCormick, the state’s Superintendent of Public Instruction, said that schools will continue to provide remote learning for the rest of the school year.

Schools previously received a 20-day waiver to reduce the number of required in-person or remote instruction days to 160. 

Schools must continue to provide instruction until they either complete 160 instructional days or at least 20 additional days of remote learning between April 2 and the end of the school year.

If a school competes the 20 days but falls short of the required 160 instructional days, the state’s department of education can waive the difference.

Schools will be required to submit a Continuous Learning Plan to the state by April 17 that outlines instructional plans moving forward.

High school seniors on track to graduate before the schools were closed on March 19 will be provided the flexibility they need to earn an Indiana diploma. 

Seniors who have met all credit and course requirements for their diploma as of March 19 when the statewide school closure began, remote learning participation requirements of their local school district, and any additional graduation requirements established by the district will still graduate. 

“Our goal is to get you across that stage,” McCormick said. 

Additionally, the executive order extends teacher licenses expiring between March 1, 2020 and August 31, 2020 until September 1, 2020.