Bringing The World Home To You

© 2024 WUNC North Carolina Public Radio
120 Friday Center Dr
Chapel Hill, NC 27517
919.445.9150 | 800.962.9862
91.5 Chapel Hill 88.9 Manteo 90.9 Rocky Mount 91.1 Welcome 91.9 Fayetteville 90.5 Buxton 94.1 Lumberton 99.9 Southern Pines 89.9 Chadbourn
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

North Carolina Public Schools Closed For Two Weeks

A sign indicates a no-student drop-off zone with Wake County public school buses in the background.
Brian Batista
/
For WUNC
A sign indicates a no-student drop-off zone with Wake County public school buses in the background.

 

Governor Roy Cooper has issued an executive order requiring all K-12 public schools across North Carolina to close for at least two weeks, beginning Monday, to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

“I don’t want any regrets in our rearview mirror when this pandemic subsides,” Cooper said at a press conference Saturday.

 

The decision to close schools statewide came hours after Wake County officials announced an elementary teacher in Fuquay-Varina had tested positive for COVID-19, and soon after Wake and Johnston County Public Schools announced they would close to students. 

 

Cooper said his executive order was not prompted by that news, but rather to prevent North Carolinians from getting sick and “to ensure that those who do have excellent care.”

 

“We need a statewide response and statewide action,” Cooper said.

 

At least 20 states across the U.S. have issued statewide school closings in an effort to curb the pandemic.

 

Mitigating Impacts On Schools and Families

 

State Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Mandy Cohen called the move an “incredibly hard and complex decision,” acknowledging the impact it will have on families.

 

Cooper has appointed an education and nutrition working group to strategize solutions for meal delivery to families who rely on federally-subsidized school meals. He also indicated the working group could address childcare solutions for frontline healthcare workers.

 

State Superintendent Mark Johnson and State Board of Education Chairman Eric Davis said they are collaborating to support these efforts, and will work with legislators to pursue calendar and testing waivers for schools as needed. These measures are typically sought during natural disasters to give schools flexibility under state law.

 

Cooper confirmed that teachers will continue to be paid during the two week closing.

 

The executive order also puts a statewide ban on all gatherings of more than 100 people, elevating previous guidance to an official mandate. The ban does not apply to restaurants or shopping centers.

Liz Schlemmer is WUNC's Education Reporter, covering preschool through higher education. Email: lschlemmer@wunc.org
More Stories