INDIAN RIVER COUNTY, Fla. — All Indian River County public schools will close for at least two weeks due to concerns over the coronavirus.
The school district said all schools, school activities, and athletics will be canceled from Monday, March 16 through Friday, March 27.
Indian River County schools are on Spring Break from March 23 to 27.
As of 4 p.m. today, the State Board of Education ordered the closure of all schools next week Mon 3/16-3/20, and the following week, 3/23-3/27, which is our scheduled spring break. Starting Mon 3/16, throughout the 2 week closure, all school activities & athletics, are canceled. pic.twitter.com/CtjojoS7N6
— Indian River Schools (@IRCSchools) March 13, 2020
"We have taken a proactive approach from the very beginning," said Superintendent David Moore at a news conference on Friday morning.
Moore said the district surveyed families to determine what kind of technology and connectivity they have at home so students can take online classes.
"For families that do not have connectivity, we have 10,000 devices that we can distribute and send home so our students can continue to connect to the instruction," said Moore.
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Moore said the district was proactive and ordered bulk items like hand sanitizer, soap, and disinfectant to have on hand for schools.
"Being proactive, knowing that this was going to be items that were hard to get a hold of, we were proactive, ordered bulk items that we now have available in our warehouse and we can distribute to our schools and principals as they need those items," Moore said.
In addition, the superintendent said the school district has hospital-grade disinfectants and is regularly cleaning "high-touch" areas like desks, chairs, and doors.
Moore said the district has asked principals to cancel mass gatherings of more than 1,000 students, and the district has also canceled all out-of-state trips.
"Do we want to cancel trips? No. But do we want to act in the best interest of our students? Yes," Moore said.
The school district meets with the Florida Department of Health in Indian River County every day for an update on coronavirus, and at this point, there are no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the county.
Out of an abundance of caution, Indian River County schools canceled a Teacher Job Fair on Friday and a School Choice Expo on Saturday.
SPECIAL COVERAGE: Coronavirus
Following the recommendations of the CDC, Health Department, and Florida Department of Education, regarding Coronavirus, our SDIRC Teacher Job Fair on 3/13, and our School Choice Expo on 3/14 have been CANCELED. pic.twitter.com/uOWYmIqEsW
— Indian River Schools (@IRCSchools) March 12, 2020
Parents in Indian River County can get the latest information about coronavirus plans in the school district by clicking here.
#HappeningNow @IRCSchools shares details about remote learning plan IF it becomes necessary as administrators continue to monitor the #Coronavirus situation, more than 10,000 devices available to ensure students can connect to internet, “we are acting in an abundance of caution” https://t.co/Fy0HiK0Oge pic.twitter.com/dhWRcT7NWW
— Linnie Supall (@LinnieSupall) March 13, 2020