(Escarpment View Public School in Milton)
Schools within the Halton Region will not be resuming in-person learning.
Premier Doug Ford and Education Minister Stephen Lecce are announcing that 280,000 more Ontario students will return to class. The students are within the following public health units:
- Eastern Ontario Health Unit
- Middlesex-London Health Unit
- Southwestern Public Health
- Ottawa Public Health
That means the following school boards will reopen to in-person learning on Monday, February 1st:
- Catholic District School Board of Eastern Ontario
- Conseil des écoles publiques de l’Est de l’Ontario
- Conseil scolaire de district catholique de l’Est ontarien
- Conseil scolaire de district catholique du Centre-Est de l’Ontario
- London District Catholic School Board
- Ottawa Catholic District School Board
- Ottawa-Carleton District School Board
- Thames Valley District School Board
- Upper Canada District School Board
The provincial government says that students in the remaining PHUs will continue virtual learning, including Halton.
Minister Lecce issued the following statement:
“On the advice of the Chief Medical Officer of Health, with the support of the local Medical Officers of Health, and with the introduction of additional layers of protection, 280,000 students in four public health regions will return to class on Monday, February 1.
“The government agrees with the growing consensus in the medical community that returning students to in-person learning is essential to the wellbeing, development and mental health of children. According to leading medical and scientific experts, including Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health, our province’s schools are safe places for learning.
“In the fall, we introduced one of the most comprehensive back-to-school plans in the country with strict health and safety measures. As more students and staff return to in-person learning, we are building on our plan by introducing stronger masking protocols to include grades 1-3, expanding access to targeted asymptomatic testing, and implementing stricter screening protocols.”
