Students in Framingham, Massachusetts, will switch to remote learning starting Monday as coronavirus cases rise in the city and the Framingham High School Daycare and Explorers programs will stop through at least Jan. 4, the district announced Sunday.
Framingham Public Schools Superintendent Robert Tremblay said that the community has seen an increase of COVID-19 cases, some of which were due to the Thanksgiving holiday and some people ignoring public health guidelines. The decision to end in-person learning was made out of an abundance of caution for the health of students and staff.
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“This requires immediate, preventative action," Tremblay said in a release. "In order to reduce the spread of the virus and to ensure that we are ready to return to expanded in-person learning by our goal of mid-January, we need to adjust our operations yet again.”
Families in the FHS Daycare and Explorers programs will be given updates regarding the tentative Jan. 4 start date, Tremblay said.
“Our goal is to keep our staff and students in good health so that we can transition to in-person learning, but this requires a community commitment to following the COVID-19 safety recommendations set by the Department of Public Health,” Tremblay said.
“In order to do this we need to take action now and also hold ourselves and each other accountable for appropriate behavior during these times to ensure our collective safety and well-being. We must be examples to the community with our responsible actions and precautionary efforts.”
The city had 560 active COVID cases as of Friday, the most recent data displayed on the city's dedicated coronavirus web page. There were 490 on Nov. 30.
