UPDATE AS OF APRIL 18: The Florida Department of Education and Governor Ron DeSantis have recommended all Florida schools remain closed through the rest of the school year. Distance learning will continue. Orange Technical College campuses and off-site locations are also closed.

“The last thing you want to do is force everyone in school and have half the kids show up because their parents didn’t want — their teachers didn’t want,” explained DeSantis. “It was an easier decision for me to make knowing distance learning is working.”

UPDATE AS OF MARCH 17: State testing is canceled. Distance learning to begin March 30. All after-school activities will continue to be suspended until further notice.

“All remaining testing for school readiness, voluntary pre-K and K-12 will be canceled for the school year,” DeSantis said. “Requirements for graduation and promotion and final course grades will be evaluated as though those assessments did not exist.”

Grades for the rest of the school year will not be calculated and the decision if the student moves on to the next grade level or repeats the grade in the 2021 school year is up to each student’s parents, per Governor DeSantis.

The Florida Department of Education has announced that all Florida schools will remain closed through March 30 due to the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19). The closures come as a result of new direction from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The schools will close for an additional week after the normal spring break dates, which are March 16-20.

According to ocps.net, “state testing will also be delayed two weeks and all extracurricular activities will be suspended.”

Click here to see latest updates from OCPS.