The Athens City School District will close on March 16 and will resume face-to-face instruction after March 30.
This decision follows Ohio University’s decision to suspend in-person instruction until March 30 as well.
“With our proximity to Ohio University and the many families connected to the University, it is very likely that many families traveled over the spring break and many have become exposed to COVID-19,” ACSD Superintendent Tom Gibbs wrote in an email.
Sean Parsons, Athens City School Board president, said that the health and well being of students is their number one priority.
“Superintendent Gibbs met with health agencies and others and reached a conclusion that this was the best course of action at this time,” Parsons said. “We are actively working to address the needs of our students on a whole host of issues including food insecurity.”
Furthermore, the school district has cancelled all practices, meetings and public events, with the exception of the March 19th school board meeting.
Unlike OU, ACSD did not mention the possibility of online instruction in the email, but ACSD has planned to make up the missed school days throughout the rest of the year and revise the calendar.
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine issued a state of emergency on March 8 and urged universities to suspend in-person instruction.
