NOTE: This story will be updated as more information comes in.
RALEIGH — N.C. Gov. Roy Cooper announced Friday afternoon that the state's K-12 public school systems would continue remote learning for the remainder of the year and not re-open campuses.
The decision followed an earlier executive order that canceled in-person classes until May 15 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
"School classrooms may be closed, but the learning is not over," Cooper said during a press conference. "We don’t make this decision lightly, but it’s important to protect the health and safety of our students and our school staff."
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Mark Johnson said at the briefing that returning to classrooms was the hope, but "just not practical at this point."
“However, I want to assure everyone that this will not be the new normal," he said. "While this crisis has forced us to be reactive over the last month, plans for next school year are already underway and will be proactive. We will share more on these proactive measures next week.”
Early indication is that schools will not look the same in the future as they have in the past. Mark Davis, chairman of the State Board of Education, said the state "will operate our schools differently in the next school year" as a response to COVID-19.
"Only time will tell how our communities recover from this public health crisis," Davis said. "This will inform our decisions about how public education will be required to evolve to ensure we maintain our basic constitutional responsibility. Regardless, we know public schools are forever changed."
The decision came one day after Cooper announced the stay-at-home order currently in place would continue until May 8.
Cooper said later in the press conference that plans are "already being made" about kicking off the 2020-2021 school year.
"Those decisions are going to be made looking at the science, data and facts," he said, "with the public health and safety of our students being No. 1."
In a news release Friday evening, Chatham County Schools said the district's meal distribution program would continue operating and principals would be communicating grading guidelines with parents "early next week."
“We so appreciate everyone who has supported the needs of students and families during this time," said John McCann, the district's public relations coordinator. "Their efforts and patience and kindness have not gone unnoticed."
The SBE approved a grading and promotion policy Thursday related to the current crop of students. Final scores will not affect GPA for grades 6-11. Among the other items:
"State leaders believe it is important that grading policies positively impact as many students as possible, validate efforts of students and all those supporting remote learning, and address issues of equity and excellence," the policy stated. "It is the intention of this policy to ensure no students receive a failing grade and that students' grades as of March 13 serve as a minimum or a hold harmless point."
Reporter Zachary Horner can be reached at zhorner@chathamnr.com or on Twitter at @ZachHornerCNR.