New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Tuesday that the city’s schools will start the academic year later than expected, the Associated Press reported.
The Democrat announced that virtual instruction will begin on Sept. 16 as opposed to Sept. 10 and in-person learning will start Sept. 21., according to the AP. The announcement came after a teachers’ union said it would consider striking without more aggressive actions by the city to prevent COVID from spreading in schools.
The state of New York prohibits public employees from participating in such demonstrations.
“It is a revision that still allows us to keep things moving forward on a tight timeline, but with additional preparation time,” de Blasio said, according to the AP.
United Federation of Teachers President Michael Mulgrew called the agreement, “the most aggressive policies and greatest safeguards of any school system in the United States of America,” the AP reported. (RELATED:Andrew Cuomo Clears New York Schools To Reopen Classrooms)
#NYC schools won’t open for in-person learning until Sept. 21st, announces @NYCMayor. #CoronavirusUSA https://t.co/JaQKrfdfaS
— Steve Herman (@W7VOA) September 1, 2020
Teachers are to report on Sept. 8 to the schools to start preparing for the school’s reopening plan, which is a mix of online and in-person learning, a United Federation of Teachers fact sheet on the reopening plan provided to the Daily Caller News Foundation.
The New York City Department of Education will implement a random coronavirus testing system for students and teachers, according to the fact sheet.
The Mayor’s Press Office and The New York City Department of Education Office of Communications and Media Relations did not immediately respond to the DCNF.
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